my nocturnal life.

22 November 2012

 
 
Cripes its been a while since my last post, Pehr is over 5 weeks old now. I guess I didn't want to feature our new arrival too much because I kind of got sick of all that baby stuff before I had one! However, it would be a lie to say that she isn't the main feature of our lives now. In fact my life is squeezed into about 2 hourly segments between feeds. This kind of does restrict any creative projects.
 
However I did manage a bit of sewing here and there. I think Bub likes the whirr of the sewing machine. The first thing I did was to make a new cover for my Boppy cushion {if you don't know what a Boppy cushion is, think yourself lucky, as its now almost an extension of my body}. I got a cheap one thinking it was a load of tosh, just more baby gumpf that you don't need. However, trying to feed for a week I almost got a dead arm, this cushion is a LIFESAVER.

Unfortunately it came with the most hideous pink spotty cover...I hope I haven't offended anyone...lets just say that it didn't fit in with our decor.



 
more recently, I made up some bibs, to look a bit like scarves, which have different patterns on the reverse.
 
Since Ive been out and about with Pehr, I'm astonished that every single person/passerby has assumed she is a boy. Simply because she is not in a pink babygrow I guess. It doesn't bother me too much {at first!} but I felt embarrassed for the other person when I tell them he is a girl. Awkward!
I tried to make some snazzy girly bibs, but there are still some boyish ones too. I like to think they are unisex. I made six...
 

 
Pehr has yet to discover the delights of sleeping, so nights are long for me. However she does like her musical nightlight and an app on my iphone.
I am willing to try anything!

 
she has begun smiling at us when we make stupid noises at her. But mostly she just looks at us like...'why am I with these strange people?'
but, the only place Pehr finds true happiness is when she is eating or being carried.

 
she always drifts off to the land of nod, until I sit down that is.

 
with all the late nights and feeding, it gets a bit boring at 3am and the like. My new addiction is Internet shopping on my phone,... oh dear.


But generally life is good, we are learning so much about Pehr, and trying to re-shape our lives around this tiny person. I hope to get back to my blog a bit more frequently soon though...

Thanks for hanging in there with me! x

73 comments

  1. Lisa Pickard22.11.12

    She's absolutely gorgeous! I always enjoy your posts whether bub-filled or not.

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  2. This was so lovely to read. I don't like reading too much baby stuff but I don't mind hearing about Pehr/your new routine as you're all so adorable!

    Love her babygrow! x

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  3. Anonymous22.11.12

    My granddaughter was born on 1st November so I understand you lack of sleep. As I say to my daughter even though it feels like forever now it does get better. Young babies are much more content for close contact so don't feel guilty cuddling her. She is beautiful xx

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  4. J.Ballard22.11.12

    ahh Happy days! You will look back on these wintery baby days with much fondness.
    Love the bibs! And love the jewellery on Rust page too!
    x

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  5. all so wonderful and how quickly five weeks has gone!

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  6. Pehr is gorgeous and those bibs are fabulous! I always love your posts :)

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  7. I think Pehr is absolutely beautiful..

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  8. Oh Pehr is beautiful and she looks so comfy and content. Those bibs are gorgeous.

    Xx

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  9. What a cute and pretty little baby!!!!!

    ♥ Franka

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  10. I know it would look silly on grown-up but I would love to have the same pajama with frogs she has :)

    It is great that the lack of sleep does not interfere with your creativity, I have to say!

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  11. I just came across your beautiful blog! Made even more beautiful by the addition of the lovely Pehr. I have a 15 mo old, and he is still not sleeping through the night. Seeing the picture of 5 weeks old Pehr makes me long for another baby.. I missed my BabyLorp being that little! Enjoy your time together.

    Cheers,
    Claire

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  12. Anonymous22.11.12

    you just keep on writing about that beautiful girl and i will keep on reading. it's interesting for we childless peeps to read about how a baby changes your life. interesting and so lovely. your work/creative life is good too, but for now i'm enjoying baby pehr so so much.

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  13. Anonymous22.11.12

    You are doing so well, she is growing so much , it must be all of that mummy milk - she is such a pretty baby.
    Have you tried baby massage?, Im sure you will both love it, and it may help her sleep longer...

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  14. This makes me want another baby so dangerously bad! With my daughter we never found out her sex before she was born so all the clothes we were given were yellows and browns. When she was born everyone thought she was a boy, even when she was wearing a dress! It will happen constantly and I think people are mostly embarrassed because they think they've offended you by getting the gender wrong.

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  15. White noise app was the best thing I ever purchased. That and the knowledge that they do start sleeping well eventually!

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  16. Absolutely gorgeous!
    Both my bubs were only content when feeding and being carried - with the latter you get the most amazing Madonna/Michelle Obama upper arms though!
    XX

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  17. Thanks for the catching up. New Mom work is pretty darn tiring, I do remember those days. Take care of you too and your precious Pehr.

    Joy

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  18. She's beautiful and your looking great too! Love the bibs

    I have a 15 week old and it's only just started getting easier! He's our first and we've had to learn everything as neither of us has really been around babies before. It's such a huge adjustment, massively overwhelming - but the smiles and sounds on the morning are just amazing ...even if it is just after 6am xx

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  19. oh, it's so beautiful to see these nursing pictures!!! i have nearly no picture of nursing my little boy and so i'm happy for you to have some!

    your nursing pillow looks so perfectly with the new cover!

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  20. Pehr is so lovely! and I love how you dress her.

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  21. Sitting here eating fish & chips with a glass of wine admiring little Pehr. She is super.

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  22. Feeding and carrying just about sums up my memories, distant yet vivid. She's gorgeous and I think your bib scarves are ingenious. I might make one for when I'm an old lady!

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  23. Your daughter is a gorgeous baby !!! I really don't think she looks like a boy and I do support your choice not to dress her too girly - love your bibs by the way :) I like that you're absolutely the same as when you were n't a mother yet, so funny, so honnest and sometimes a little politically incorrect ;) anyway, motherhood seems to fit you perfectly well !

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  24. Love this little snippet into your life as a new mum... your daughter is lovely.

    (By the way, how did you manage to avoid the naff plastic and pink presents from well-meaning aunts etc? Or did you.. like me, keep the gift receipts?)

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  25. Anonymous22.11.12

    Oh, she's so precious. Glad all is well and you're enjoying her.
    Laurie Hodson

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  26. Always a pleasure, never a chore whatever you write about, keep going with the nights, they get it eventually! I look back on those lovely quiet night time cuddles with nostalgia now.

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  27. Ahhhh she is PERFECT! Your blog feed isn't working in my reader so I totally missed all the action, just been catching up. BIG congratulations!! She shares my birthday too... a lovely well balanced Libra.
    With my little girl I just used to have a boy name too so when people said 'what's he called' I just said 'Jack'. Saved the girl/boy hassle.

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  28. leah unwin22.11.12

    Utterly adorable! It's exhausting though isn't it? my twins are 20wks this wk & I've not managed 1 creative thing in that time(thinking about it, I don't think I've even managed a wee to be honest!),although I have just managed to 'win' an original hand made 1950's crochet throw on ebay so I might claim to have made that! I seem to be learning something new & baby related every day! Pehr is very beautiful, congratulations. xx

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  29. Anonymous22.11.12

    oh my GOODNESS, what a beauty! congratulations!

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  30. yes, Artemis, I know the feeling - my son was not interested in sleeping unless carried or cuddles... I wish I'd relaxed more about it now! "Surrender" is a word that springs to mind - I didn't really understand it until now, looking back on that time. It was so hard! But, Wil is 5 now, and sleeps really well, it will happen for Pehr too... Just go with the flow if you can. Much love to you three xo

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  31. what a sweet, sweet little one you have. and i love the little bibs you've made. hope she falls into her sleeping rhythm soon!

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  32. Oh, she(Perh) is so cute! I live in sweden but I'm from Finland. You have nice blogg. I can't english very well, but I try:). Babies are so amazing, I have 3 weeks old daughter.. Have a nice day!

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  33. Kate v22.11.12

    oh she is such a doll! my baby girl is 12 weeks - she's my third so i'm not in the shock stage of new parenthood that you are going through. enjoy every magical moment because despite all the not-so-amazing bits, it really is an amazing time in your life. And my hint is to get yourself a copy of "On Becoming Babywise" - it's a practical and commonsense guide to getting some sleep for you and baby. Bit of mumbo jumbo and jargon in there but all in all a sound philosophy that worked a treat with all three for me. best of luck xx

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  34. Your daughter is beyond cute! Reading your posts also makes me super broody, even though your speaking of lack of sleep!

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  35. The whole trick to night time waking is to not engage with her too much. Keep the lights off or only one very low, no noise and no flicking lights like the telly or the iPod as babies found this stimulating. Just feed and change her nappy if up have to and return her to bed as quickly as possible.....maybe try to get her thru to the next feed without changing her and if you are going to change her do that before you feed her. Otherwise she is going to sleep on you all day ad be up all night! It may take a week or 2 to get her into night time sleeping and then I might come all good for a mon or two and then she might try o revert again. I can remember a week when I spent every day getting him to sleep during the day.....just kept putting him back.....plenty of tears all round but I couldn't cope with nil sleep a night. Things really start to settle from 6 weeks and then again at 12 weeks but they so need to learn to self settle to go to sleep. Always put her down awake but dozy. She is beautiful ......and I 'm not into pink either.....very Disney lol x

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  36. dear artemis
    happy to see your post today! glad you are doing fine with Pehr and for the first time you posted a pix of her with eyes opened!!1 she is so pretty :D

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  37. Thanks Jacaranda, yes all that works if they are actually asleep to begIn with! Pehr thinks she will get eaten by a wolf or freeze to death if she dis-engages with a parent, some primitive survival mechanism! Anyways we think we've cracked it with the music and lights which distract her from screaming long enough to get sleepy. So far so good!

    Many thanks for your suggestion though! X

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  38. Ah gosh, she is divine- keep on writing about her! We're all nutters aren't we? lovely post xo

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  39. Awwwww Pehr is so gorgeous! I love the way your have-a-go attitude is extending to making those sweet scarf-bibs - I think you're going to be getting commissions for that particular gap in the market! x

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  40. Cute! Loving the many bibs you made! It's nice that you can just sew your own baby things. Clothes as well?

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  41. Just stumbled upon your blog, its fab. Little Pehr is such a cutie. My little ones are 3 and 7 weeks, I found that giving up caffeine helped both my little ones to sleep. x

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  42. I found your lovely blog after searching for Aladins Cave in Lewisham...and it is just lovely! HUGE congrats on your new arrival, welcome skinside little one.
    Im not sure if you've stumbled across it in your late night browsing but there is a lovely natural parenting site called Natural Mamas. Lots of crafty mamas on there...worth a wander around.
    Nicky
    x

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  43. She is such a cutie. love the pretty bibs you have made x

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  44. She is just so beautiful with gorgeous eyes. X

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  45. Congratulations, so precious!
    Helle:--

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  46. Melanie from Sydney23.11.12

    I had the same thoughts about the booby pillow. As a nicu nurse I offer them to breast feeding mums all the time, though when I had my own bubby 5 months ago I thought "how ridiculous, I don't need one". A few sore backs and arms later, I bought a banana pillow aka booby pillow. Use it during the night feeds (we are at one night feed currently at around 2am, and then next around 6am). Eventually you will get some sleep during the night, all babies are different, I always get annoyed when people tell me their baby sleeps through the night, as if my baby is the odd one out, but not true. And yes my little girl is always referred to as "oh he is so cute", even when she is wearing a bit of pink, so just nod and walk away. Your little Pehr has a perfect little girl face, so who cares what they say. It is also hard having a new baby in cold weather, you just want to look at them all naked and yummy, but the cold doesn't let us mummies do that, just a quick kiss on the bare belly inbetween nappy changes and baths.

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  47. Melanie from Sydney23.11.12

    Oh and a quick add. You should make and sell the booby pillow covers. I am hopeless on the sewing machine, and have searched far and wide for a decent cover, and haven't found any except horrid ones with thrills on the side. So please go make more in the small moments you get and sell them in your shop. Please!! hehe

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  48. Lovely to see you all doing you're thing the pink overload. Impressed that you've been sewing as well! She's a dot x

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  49. Anonymous23.11.12

    the pics are lovely. sorry to hear she isnt sleeping at night. we had the same with our son. i think he got used to being held or being in his buggy or car seat as thats where he fell asleep but in his cot was another matter. Being so tired is the worst thing in the world. I would say sleep when she is sleeping and let the chores wait a while. Maybe try some bottled milk too just before bedtime to fill her tummy and know that you are doing a GREAT job and the hardest one there is x

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  50. Oh gosh, she is beautiful and so tiny. She's adorable.

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  51. I remember those days, it was few years ago now. It feels so lonely being awake in the wee hours when settling or feeding bub. We had to readjust their sleeping patterns as they thought that night time was awake time, it wasn't easy but it did eventually work and then I felt more human. One thing that worked for me was i learnt to feed in bed. I was told "you shouldn't do that as you can roll on them" but you know, it worked, I finally got some sleep and so did baby.

    You will find what works best for you and these days will pass quickly.

    Both my girls very rarely wear pink. Yay!

    I have been reading your blog for a long time now and this is a lovely new stage in your lives.

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  52. Just wondering how Plimsoll is adjusting to little Pehr?

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  53. Anonymous23.11.12

    Don't worry too much about posting often, enjoy this time with your little Pehr, gorgeous girl that she is. I'll hang in there, I enjoy your blog so much. It goes by so quickly this time, my chook is 10 months old and 3 hourly feeds are long gone, was such a strange/wondrous time being up in the wee hours just the two of us. I look back fondly. Btw my girl has been mistaken for a boy even when wearing pink (without spots of course)....quite annoying! Sally from Sydney.

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  54. Nicola Hensel24.11.12

    Oh it's so lovely to read a post again, I've been wondering how you are going- those first months are so intense. She and you look so beautiful and well. Sleep will eventually come for all. Best wishes to your little family.

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  55. Anonymous24.11.12

    Totally sympathise with the all nighter my daughters 18 and keeps me awake at night for very different reasons now!
    We always kept her in bed with us and I fed on demand so we sort of set a bed time, quiet and semi dark, which was important as we live in a very small flat and being totally quiet and completely dark was impossible and I certainly wasn't giving up doing what I wanted to do of an evening. I have to say even today my daughter can sleep through any noise. Hang in there it does get easier your world won't aways be so topsy turvy.
    Jane x

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  56. Love Pehr's bibs and those tiny feet...

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  57. She's SO DARNED CUTE. Oh I could just...just... just kiss the computer screen.

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  58. Look at those tiny toes! She gets more beautiful with everypost! I love the bibs! & th fabric for the pillow is stunning! xx

    www.satinandsouffles.com
    www.satinandsouffles.com

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  59. She is so lovely! And I love seeing this precious new stage in your lives! There is something about your pictures that is so wonderfully atmospheric, it really takes me back to when my first was that tiny. It's so wonderful and intense all at the same time! Sweet Pehr's clothes are totally and utterly glorious, and you are brilliant to have made them (especially now she's here! My daughter's 16 months now and the closest i've got is dreaming and buying the fabrics thinking I will manage it...) She's literally cocooned in handmade love.
    The sleep thing is a toughie. Somehow you make it through, though I have never been good at routines etc. If you can read while you feed, I loved a book called "What Mothers Do (Especially When it Looks Like Nothing)' by Naomi Stadlen - very warm and encouraging about the confusion and changes that come with this magical time in your lives.

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  60. Karolin25.11.12

    dear artemis,
    your little pehr is such a beatiful girl. i always enjoy reading your blog and love the things you do. and now, the sweet little girl is with you, even a bit more.
    looking forward to yout next posts and wish you three all the best!

    a big warm hug from hamburg, karolin

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  61. ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ times a thousand......

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  62. Simply adore this post and your creations. And the beautiful images of little Pehr feels me with so much excitement for my fourth baby arriving in the Spring. It sounds like you guys are doing so well. It's wonderful to see xxx

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  63. I adore the addition of Pehr to your posts and photos! As our first little one, a girl, Lina, is now almost 14 weeks I am right there with you! I remember 5 weeks and I just want to remind you that it gets better. Oh so much better!! Lina never wanted to be put down but somewhere around 3 months she has become much happier to be on her own for a bit, so I am actually able to do the dishes now. Wheee :)

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  64. Anonymous27.11.12

    Lovely blog! I too am a crafter with a baby.life is fast!

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  65. Your sweet Pehr is so angelic! I recently gave birth to my little Ina a couple weeks ago so I can most certainly relate with the 2 hour spurts of living.

    Us new mamas need to stick together :)

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  66. She is precious. I love the bibs. I hate the pink for girl, blue for boy so always tried to avoid it but then had to deal with the people not knowing what sex my baby was!

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  67. Oh my! Pehr is beautiful. So happy for you. I just caught up on your blog, so it was especially exciting...I checked one day & you were still pregnant & then I get on today & you had the baby! Hah. Love, love the cozy style you have going on. Your little shed & general craftiness inspire me endlessly. Blessings to you & your sweet little family, Plimsoll included ;)

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  68. Anonymous28.11.12

    Pehr is just so beautiful and no wonder you and Nao are transfixed by her. I admire the fact that you still keep yourself busy making beautiful things, I am single and live alone and do not make anything! You give me the inspiration to turn off the evil box and get busy! Anyway, enjoy your lovely days and I think Pehr is a very lucky girl to have such lovely, creative parents. All the best Ruth.

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  69. wow ..just stopped by your blog thinking you would still be pregnant and you have a five week old beautiful baby Pehr! Sleepless nights are difficult (my twins are eighteen now) but with a little tweaking will get better,,,it sounds boring but routine really does help ....plenty of fresh air during the day to tire her out, bath just before bedtime and cut out anything containing caffeine (chocolate,tea etc) I think you are just doing beautifully ..well done :)

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  70. Anonymous3.12.12

    ♥♥♥ from Prague

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  71. Anonymous9.12.12

    You sure made a beautiful baby! She's absolutely gorgeous. Congratulations to the whole family and welcome to planet Earth, dear Pehr.
    Hugs from the west coast of Canada.

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