Neil Gaiman

Today we went to see the brilliant Neil Gaiman reading and signing, and Amanda Palmer singing in Chapters at five! Well, that was the idea, unfortunately the crowd was quite big, and no microphones used, so we couldn't actually see or hear anything, and as i had the buggy with me there was no trying to shuffle for a better space, either. When it came to queueing for signing, which snaked around the whole back section of the shop, i was however ushered to the front of the queue, courtesy of my little babe! I got a book signed for my friend, and he also signed m's fabric picture book! Hm, can't let her drool on it anymore now!



Afterwards my friend A and I went for some fish and chips and tea in Benny's, and then it was home for me and M. A went back and got another book signed at 20 past nine! Over 3 hours of reading and signing, respect! I wonder how many people were there...

M behaved so well, sleeping all the way into town, quietly taking in the sights and sounds in the book shop, she got a little grumpy around 6 so i fed her (in the fantasy/science fiction section, very quiet with everybody trying to catch a glimpse at the reading) and she fell asleep soon after, sleeping most of the way home, too! Back in the house she was full of giggles and smiles!

another sling picture

this is the pouch sling i made for my husband, i think it came out a little too short, and it's not even washed yet! although it's not on quite right, either, it's a little twisted. i think the westfalen fabric works really well for guys, this is a woven stripe coordinated with a matching check. m isn't quite used to being in a sling, yet, after 2 or 3 minutes she was trying to stand up to get out! if the weather's still nice when the rugby's over, maybe i can convince the daddy to go for a little walk with us, to try out the sling properly, maybe in the cradle hold.

the toy attached to the sling is a 'tigerente' (tiger duck), a janosch character.

slings, christening and baby weight

it's from www.gorgeousbaby.ca, and i'm very happy with it! lovely soft fabric, good fit (i measured according to the website), and m seems to like it, too!

it's great for breastfeeding, i'm planning to go to the parent and baby cinema on tuesday, i think i'll bring it for that, it gives good support.





i made a pouch sling for p, too, it's nowhere near as nice as, and much simpler than the bought one, i sewed it this evening and can't wait to try it out! a reinforced curved seam is quite hard to do,, especially when the curve already looks a bit wobbly! but i used nice westfalen-fabric, so it's definitely man-friendly, and all cotton. unfortunately i can't remember if i pre washed the fabric, i kind of think i mightn't have... must remember to only wash it cold or it won't fit!!

we had the christening last week, a mad day, 23 adults and 9 children in the tiny house! a bit of a squeeze but all had fun, and the food went down well, my mum and i cooked all day saturday, and my neighbour made lovely desserts. anybody in north dublin, get your desserts from her! her cakes are divine! there was a merengue roll, a swiss roll with mandarins, a cheese cake and a banoffi, yum!

all the work cleaning, tidying, cooking, and 8 visitors from home shifted the last 2 kilos of the baby weight that were still hanging on! considering that i don't diet and eat whatever i like, including chocolate, that's not bad! i can't say my figure is the same as before, there's definitely a bit of soft belly jelly that seems to be here to stay, but at least most of my jeans and all of my tops fit again. oh, did i mention i'm loosing my hair! the post pregnancy molting has definitely started :-( and i have so little to start with...

i'm getting used to motherhood and am enjoying myself here, while i'm off work there's lots of time for cuddles and giggles with my little angel, and while i'm not doing half the things i thought i might be doing on maternity leave, i'm enjoying pottering around, and finally having a car so i can go for walks on the beach and for trips to the shopping centre for a browse and a latte, and to buy 'exotic' vegetables like fennel, which i couldn't get here in the village... i kind of expected to be really bored and dieing to get back to work, but that's not the case at all! it'll be hard to go back in autumn!