Quote: First Day of Fall

Our Routine: 6 Months

When Marc turned six months, we were able to sign him up for swimming "lessons" at the community centre. The summer class consisted of half an hour every morning for two weeks. During these two weeks is when I really started to notice that we were finally falling into a very consistent routine... and that I was exponentially more productive as a results. I decided to make a record of this routine so that I could look back on it and see how far we've come:

Once our lessons were over, our routine sort of fell apart. We were away for a funeral and then had a short week leading into my birthday weekend. But, once things settled a bit, I cobbled together a similar routine that we've been following until very recently.

The parent-tot "free" swim times were on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 12:05-12:55. For Monday, Wednesday and Friday, we would either go for a walk to the park, do groceries or attend a nearby early-years drop-in program at an old age home just around the corner from our community centre. Obviously, there's quite a bit of flexibility in this routine. For example, nap frequency completely depends on how long he is able to sleep and how hard he plays in between.

 As you can see, our routine changed in just a few short weeks. We went from 5 feeds to 4 as we were able to comfortably stretch to 4 hours between feeds. Now, as we approach 8 months, our routine has changed again so that we are eating solids for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We've also sign up for the fall/winter sessions at the community centre (swimming lessons for Marc and a water fitness class for me: one where I can bring Marc into the pool with me!), which start next week. Once we're solidly into that new routine, I'll likely post an update so that in a few years, I can look back and remember these fun times.

Wordless Wednesday: Marc's Radio

Sketchbook Pages: Week 37

Once again, I'm nearing the end of my "daily" sketchbook. I'm toying with the idea of stepping away from collage and challenging myself to use some of my other supplies. I think I'm ready for a bit of a change.

9/10 Empire

9/11 Ace of Spades

9/12 Green Olives

9/13 Meteor Shower

9/14 Candy Cane

Materials:

• assorted papers (scrapbooking paper, paint chip, magazine pages, ephemera)

Sketchbook Pages: Week 36

I wanted to get back on track with my daily sketchbook pages this week and I'm really happy with the results. I'm still working in this tiny sketchbook, making small, pieced collages. Each spread comes together so quickly I really have no excuse not to fit it in somewhere throughout the day!

9/3 Kelp

9/5 Chocolate + Florals

9/6 Bubbles

9/8 Perfect Little Print

9/9 Minted

Materials used:

• assorted paper (scrapbooking paper, magazine pages, ephemera)
• paint (and a favourite tiny hand)

Throwback Thursday: Today I...

Illustrate your day.

Wordless Wednesday: Birthday Flowers

Sketchbook Pages: Fall Bucket List

The beginning of September has brought a certain crispness to the air. Slightly cooler nights have me anticipating my favourite season. And so to celebrate, I've created a fall bucket list. An extensive list of fun, easy things like drinking tea or going to the park, with a few more challenging ones thrown in for the heck of it. I don't expect to check all of these items off... but that's ok. In fact, part of the fun will be in the tracking and seeing how we can squeeze in just one more activity or baked good.

As you can see, I've already started colouring in a few of the items I've already accomplished (maybe technically a bit early, but I'm excited!).

What are you doing to celebrate the changing seasons?

Sketchbook Pages: Week 35

I still haven't returned to my daily practice of sketchbooking - a goal I'm really going to focus on this week. I decided last week that instead of choosing between the two sketchbooks mentioned earlier, I would try something on a new scale: a much smaller scale. I've also had this sketchbook for YEARS, so I hope to finally fill it with small, simple collages. Sometimes a few constraints really helps your creativity soar (that's what I'm hoping anyway).

8/29 Pause. Breathe.

8/30 Torn.

Materials used:

• assorted papers (magazine, scrapbooking, handmade)

2017 Goals: August

...

17 GOALS FOR 2017:

1. Read 30 books. (13/30)
2. Finish 2 cross-stitch patterns. (1/2)
3. Finish Amber art book and start a new one. (3 pages to go)
4. Take monthly baby and family photos. (8/12)
5. Journal or sketchbook daily. (25/31)
6. Set a schedule for blogging (weekly) (5/5), crafting (daily) (9/31) and getting out of the house (3-4x weekly) (5/5).
7. Make and freeze meals for post-partum. 
8. Gather 10 good crockpot recipes. (4/10)
9. Set a routine for exercising (3-4x weekly). (0/5)
10. Catalogue library. (no progress)
11. Organize, declutter, minimize, purge. (no real progress here, unless you count the backyard)
12. Figure out cloth-diapering (still need to practice with these before deciding if I want to continue with it), nursing/pumping and making baby food (so much fun!)
13. Stay in touch with friends while on maternity leave. (yes)
14. Be intentional deepening relationship with Pat. Set weekly date nights. (5/5 - still nothing too fancy, but spending time together is what counts)
15. Go to a weekly drop-in session or mother/baby class. (5/5)
16. Make a fabric book and a colour sorting game for Marc. (0/2)
17. Use fresh herbs and tomatoes from the garden as much as possible and preserve them come the fall. (used some herbs in pasta bakes and salads this month)

Some more decent progress - looking forward to another intentional month!