Some photos from the past few days/weeks of life around here…

This little girl has never faltered in her unwavering adoration of her chubby-cheeked brother (and he just jumps for joy when she or one of the boys come into his line of focus… he bestowes big open mouthed sloppy kisses freely)

This little girl is also in the process of taking over our kitchen/living room with her elaborate games involving hundreds of dolls, her wooden-pig farm, Peppa Pig and family (thank you Deirdre!)

There is a lot of this… he is infinitely more philosophical when in close proximity to a breast and often the longest and happiest chats are supplemented with a bit of nursing (and isn’t his jumper just gorgeous? Made by Tara, it thankfully still fits- aren’t handknits just magical- and I simply love that cow button!!)

Winter was cold last year- colder than it had ever been in my memory… a porch at the back door should act as a bit of a buffer-zone against the elements: (the immensely beleaguered talented harassed and hard-working) Fergal and the boys put it up in little more than a weekend, and already has become a warm, sunny spot (and houses all those piles of wellies, wet coats, wet smelly dogs and wet cats that want, but aren’t welcome, to be in the kitchen!)

I’ve constantly give thanks for being so blessed with not just a wonderful family, but blessed over with fantastic friends… these are little flowerpot-shaped cupcakes with the most light and mousse-y green icing, topped with these show-stopping flowers, made by my friend Sophie who out-does herself every time! (I need to do a talented-friends-show-and-tell: seriously, between handknits to die for (I really need to learn to knit), baking, sewing and general crafty goodness, our home is becoming a showcase for our very gifted and accomplished buddies)

I have been eyeing up half a large kilner jar of last years mincemeat, but I am insisting I hold out making the first batch of mince pies until November (besides, I’m currently obsessed with making (and eating) apple-tarts) 

 So in the dark of today, I thought we would make our own sunshine:

with egg yolks!

I read Cenninis book years ago, and was always amused by his instruction that to paint (in egg tempera) young peoples skin tone one needed a town hens-egg, and for ruddier country peoples complexion, one needed a deeper yolk from a country hen.

I had 5 yolks from two days ago when I cooked (disastrous) meringues (-I forgot to turn down the heat…) so we mixed these with some watercolour paint to make the egg tempera.

I always loved the sheen and quality of egg tempera, and thankfully this wasn’t lost on little (and not so little) ones (our eldest son usually doesn’t partake in these art and craft activities anymore as he is a practicing moody teenager) 

What we did: we poured the egg yolks into a bowl (there is a filmy sack around it which you remove, and sometimes if they have been sitting uncovered, there can be a hard coating too) 

Into small pots (kept from our Floradix multi-vitamin bottles: ever so useful for so many things) we put some watercolour paint

(my watercolour tubes were in the studio, across the yard, and I really couldn’t bring myself to dash out in the torrential downpour)

so we used watercolour dyes, which weren’t as strong as I had hoped. Nevertheless, no-one seemed to notice or mind. We mixed approximately half and half-paint and yolk, mixed thoroughly then began to paint. It dries quite quickly, so really beautiful effects can be achieved by layering colours, and the paint feels beautifully soft to use.

Just as I began to use some of the paint, our smallest person decided that he needed to nurse. Right now. So tomorrow I am hoping to mix up some more and to use it on the art-angel-dolls I have been making. And to finish these little collage pieces I have been putting together in order to make into printed cards:

In the midst of everything else, it feels so good to be creating in tiny moments that pop up during the day

(Joining Ginny for Yarn Along again this week)

I haven’t made quite as much progress on this shawl as I had hoped, but slowly and surely it will get done.

The book is one my mother gave me- it has been the one nearest while I’m nursing, and as I use bicarbonate of soda for cleaning and cooking every day, it is providing some great new information and uses. 

Can you see the rainbow in the photo? Our friend Bobbie gave Baby James a present of a big faceted crystal to hang in the window, and our kitchen is now sprinkled with rainbows… 

They create untold delight, especially when they land in small girls porridge!!

Our boys were gone to a science exhibition today, so our small girl and I were at home with the baby, who, miraculously slept for about an hour. In his little cot.

A dear friend of mine

(one of the many, I must add, who have made dinners, desserts, ran errands, cleaned and took care of me since baby arrived. Once again, I feel truly blessed)

cleaned and tidied the kitchen yesterday while making us dinner. What a delight that was: the worktops were slowly disappearing and every time I started the mammoth task of tidying, baby would wake starving (he seems to be in a permanent state of starvation!!)

So today, Grace and I painted and baked while he slept. These flowers are from my friends garden, and I took a notion to paint them- I’m not a flower-painter as such- but it was so relaxing.
Grace glued every small piece of paper she could find into her notebook, adding stickers and paint with abandon. It was great.

Then we had some warm soda bread with butter before the little boy woke. (I’ll add a recipe later, it is so delicious and easy to make)

So now we are here beside the stove (it is so cold), our boys are home, listening to music before they go to bed. Everyone is tired, I welcome the thought of the weekend being here at last!

(In the mornings, my son, Michael, makes me tea while I nurse our little one beside the stove. What a sweetie!! Edited to add: the funny little face in the background was made after our little girl dunked a biscuit in my tea, forgot as she was mid-dunk, and just as the photo was taken the biscuit melted into the tea… after all my warnings to her!!!!!)

A few days before our Little Man was born I ended up in hospital with a rotten infection- I spent the days in isolation (with my own TV!! We don’t have a television at home, but the novelty wore off after about ten minutes when I realised there was nothing on any of the nine channels; didn’t stop our children’s channel-surfing every time they came in though) After four days of IV antibiotics fluids and stuff to take down my temperature (they weren’t sure what was wrong with me and my temperature went completely mad for three days before it came down to normal) I ended up having a C-section… 

Thanks to all that, my insides were in flitters and both Baby and I ended up with candida :-(   …

(and I with several other mad, crazy things)

I’ve been using homeopathy with great success, and have been using cloth nappies (diapers) to help clear the nappy/diaper rash (coconut oil on his skin also- anti bacterial and anti-viral; gosh how I love that oil!!)

 I had hoped to use cloth from day one, but what with having the C-section that was put on hold until I could organise myself properly. When Baby developed the diaper rash, I promptly began using cloth, but came up with a problem: I had no wraps small enough for him. Hence, Necessity being the Mother of Invention. 

My good friend, Bernadette, mentioned making wool wraps, (also anti-bacterial and super-breathable) and so today I went looking for my stash of felted jumpers. I found two arms of a jumper (thanks Terri, that jumper has had many lives since!!) and whilst changing our little sweetpea I cut out and fit this wool wrap. It was very easy, and once I had it cut out only took a couple of minutes to sew up on the machine. 

A quick tutorial!

My plan was to make a pair of wool “shorts” (I know as my beloved mother reads this she is having palpitations at the thought of wool next to her skin… but truly, it is soft and completely non-itchy!) so I cut the arms to approximately 10 inches long 

(Measure? What? Me?!) 

There was a bit of a seam which I cut out and made a slit to the top of the cuff.

I turned one leg right-side out and lined up the other leg inside it. 

With the machine I sewed from where the waistband would be, to the other side. 

As the body looked a bit wide, I re-sewed a centimetre or two in to make a snugger fit.

Thankfully I still had the neck band of the jumper, and so measured how wide the waistband needed to be, and sewed it on, stretching the ribbed neckband as I sewed

I think the wool shorts look hilarious, but most importantly they do the job perfectly.

(look at those skinny little legs!!!)

Tomorrow I am going to make another wrap based on a triangle of wool fabric (Even easier than this one, typically I only found the pattern online after I made this one) 

Oh, who can resist a fluffy cloth bottom?!