A quilt for my niece...

A couple of years ago now I made a little quilt for my youngest nieces 1st birthday, she's far too big for it now, but apparently uses it for her dolls (one of whom she's recently renamed Milo in honor of her new baby cousin!), anyway, it's my eldest niece's 7th birthday coming up so thought I'd make her a quilt for that occasion.
I'm not entirely sure that little girls really appreciate quilts as gifts but I know she proudly shows off any handmade gifts I have given her in the past. Also being the mother of a newborn allows me little spare time so perhaps it is a little ambitious a project right now, but it's what I decided I wanted to do!! I bought myself a rotary blade and a quilters ruler yesterday as I am so so rubbish at cutting in a straight line, I've picked out the fabric and I've even cut it into strips (I'm going to do log cabin stylie I thinks)...now I just need to set up my sewing machine and find time in between nappy changes and feeding to actually do some sewing!
The kari-me sling I purchased weeks and weeks ago, finally arrived today...so at least I now have hands! Milo loves it...he's currently laying fast asleep inside it, he's the most contented he's been in days!

I know I said I wasn't going to go all baby like on this blog but I can't help but share a the first picture I've managed to get of him smiling!

A mobile for Milo...

Milo has really begun to focus on objects the last week or so...he's so inquisitive, his favourite place to stare is most definitely any one of our many book cases. However, although he will happily lay there chatting away to himself, I was concerned that he had nothing particularly interesting to stare at (except of course the ceiling) when he's lying in his moses basket.

We never really got particularly prepared for his arrival in the sense of creating a nursery for him and never purchased a mobile, so there was only one thing for it, to make one of course.

It is incredibly simple, but then is was quite hastily made in snatched moments here and there! It was also very difficult to photograph, unfortunately you can see our terribly messy house in the background, but I did just have a baby (which is of course my excuse for everything at the moment!). Having said that he is in fact 6 weeks old today! It's gone so quickly and yet feels like forever! He sits on my lap as I type, looking up at me with bright eyes and smiles...bliss!

A piece of cake...

...is most certainly not anything like how looking after myself and my precious little one has been these last 5 weeks!

Looking after Milo hasn't really been all that tough in itself (he is an incredibly good baby really) looking after myself has been far more challenging!! I've been (and still am) really unwell with one thing and another over these past weeks...the problem with being unwell when you're looking after a newborn is that you just don't have the time to get better...you can't just go to bed for a couple of days and fix yourself up...as a result everything just seems so much worse.

However Milo is sleeping soundly (a rare daytime occurrence, but I shouldn't complain as he sleeps so well at night now) and I accidentally found myself down the cake aisle in Marks and Spencers this afternoon (and may have got a little carried away) so I have a few precious moments to myself to enjoy a cup of coffee and much much cake!

Three pieces of cake may seem a little glutinous, but I'm not going to lie to you I probably will be going back for seconds!

Of course it is all worth it, especially when Milo gave us he first (definitely not wind) smiles yesterday and I get to kiss his super soft, sweet smelling head, every day!