Cloths

Beautiful burping cloths via Sir Bubbadoo.

Fabric

With two swaddling blankets under my belt this weekend, I've been searching for fun fabrics to keep me inspired and motivated to continue sewing. Lucky Kaeru Fabric is a great online supplement to what's available locally in St. John's. Above are some of my favourites from Lucky Kaeru.

Sweatshirt

For a boy with a triangle-themed room, this sweatshirt fits in perfectly! Available via Bang Bang Copenhagen at Baaknin. This concept has me so inspired!

Bag

The musing about a diaper bag continues. Part of me finds it hard to commit to one bag (one bag, you mean like one pair of shoes?!), while another part of me thinks that streamlining getting out the door is a great goal and a diaper bag (that you don't have to always pack and unpack) would be of great assistance in achieving such.

Here's the problem - I have a weak spot in my back. This makes carrying an "across the body" bag next to impossible. The last thing I want is to be laid up with a bad back a few weeks after baby is born (literally, I'm talking about not being able to walk). Backpacks seem like a sensible solution - but don't seem formal enough for every occasion. At this moment, I'm thinking that a Baggu daypack with some Baggu zipper packs would be a great (and affordable and compact) option for heading to the park, while a Baggu duck bag would be perfect for lunch out or a shopping adventure.

Burger

Wow. What a delicious-looking burger to enjoy this holiday weekend! Recipe available at Design*Sponge.

Grumpy

For our birthday celebration (Greg and I have birthdays one week apart), our friends Russell and Amanda gave us (among other lovely presents) a copy of Jeremy Tankard's Grumpy Bird. It has since become one of our favourite books (of all time). I'm so excited to read it to our son later this summer! What are your favourite childrens books? I've started a running list of books that I want to collect for our little man, so I'm so curious to hear your recommendations. xo

Matches

As non-smokers with a fireplace that isn't lined, our need for matches and a lighter are slim, but nonetheless having something on hand to light candles for a casual dinner in is something we enjoy. These literary matches fit the bill perfectly. For purchase at Dippy Lulu.

Slings

One of the elements of being a mother that hadn't occurred to me before conceiving was baby-wearing. Of course I'd seen parents with backpack carriers on hiking trails and with Baby Bjorns at the mall, but beyond casually observing such gadgets I hadn't thought about the closeness that such modes of 'transportation' provide for baby. The more I think about it, the more excited I become about the prospect of 'wearing' our son around town. Given we enjoy hiking, we'll likely splurge for an Ergo baby carrier (or the like) for use by dad and mom, but I'm also enjoying the options of Sakura Bloom for a little post-baby glamour. Image via Carry Me Away.

Birthdays

I'm dreaming of dipping our son's birthday presents in confetti a la tokketok.

Petuna

The current internal debate in my head (and sometimes external debate at our house) is around the necessity for a diaper bag. I have plenty of large satchels that seem to fit the bill with the addition of a changing pad. In fact, while I was studying in the UK many years ago, I purchased a fantastic large red bag from French Connection, and my roommate remarked at the time that it would make a perfect diaper bag. When I look into the top of my closet these days and catch it out of the corner of my eye, I can't help but think she was right. Having retired it from daily use a few years back, being a diaper bag might be just the trick to breathe new life into that piece.

I'm also considering the need for a bag that works for both mom and dad. With that criteria in mind, there's a clear choice - the Journey Pack from the Scout collection at Petunia Pickle Bottom. Isn't it great?

Chairs

What a beautiful place to sit and relax in Sao Paulo! Image via Richard Powers.

Speaking of beautiful places, my aunt and uncle used to own this home on the west side of downtown St. John's. Isn't it charming?

Triangle

Coincidentally, we selected a circle motif, a symbol of unity, for our wedding to tie together various elements of the day and have chosen a triangle motif, a symbol of the number three, for our son's nursery. The meanings behind those shapes didn't occur to me until this moment! How odd is that?

Given our triangle theme, wouldn't this Diane Elson rug be perfect? However, prior to happening upon this piece, we selected a super soft grey rug for the nursery.

Popsicles

The sun is finally shining, and I'm lusting after Joanna's avocado popsicles. Monday night is grocery night at the Clarke household, and I'm very much inclined to add the necessary ingredients to our list. Image via Cup of Jo.

Painting

Today, operation construct a nursery commences at our house. As it will likely take us a few weeks to complete the room, in advance of sharing our own nursery, here are some beautiful ones from Modern Nursery.

Rosettes

In thinking about THE quilt, I'm finding myself drawn to all sorts of little blankets. I'm particularly smitten by this yo-yo quilt with sweet rosettes and contrasting stitching. My mom made a large one for her bed over a period of years, and I'm loving the updated and modern stitching and colour arrangement of this version from the Purl Bee.

Get-Togethers

Aren't these get-together cards genius? I'd love to pop one in the mail to a friend I haven't seen in awhile.

Salts

Right now, I'm super interested in making flavoured salts to spice up our standby weeknight meals. Image via Steamy Kitchen.

Wednesday

It's a foggy mid-week, and I'm celebrating with a pony tail and a hot chocolate gossip date with a girlfriend. Do you have any routines or fail safe activities that help you get through the work week? xo Image via le love.

Gear

With a baby comes (the possibility, if not the reality) a house full of gear to help respond to every situation. Greg and I are on a quest to buy what we need, and nothing more. While there are some things that immediately scream indulgence (a wipe warmer?), others seem to have merit (a bottle warmer?). On many fronts, I'm feeling clueless as to what is a need and what is a want. As we attempt to prepare for our new arrival, I'm curious to hear your advice on baby must-haves. Image via Wee Textile.

P.S. If you're curious about what baby products I'm favouring to date, check out the side bar of this blog.

Thornet

Every home needs a hot pink chair. Thornet chair available from abc home.

Quilt

Having finished the big art project, I'm now on to preparing to construct an equilateral triangle (the dominant shape in our son's nursery) crib quilt. As this is my first attempt, I'm nervous, but curious to see how it turns out. Images of inspiring quilts via CarsonToo and The Little Red Hen.

Scandinavia

One of our long-term plans is to spend a sabbatical in Norway (or Sweden or Denmark... we're flexible). Having only ever spent one weekend in Scandinavia (a cold and dark November weekend in Stockholm and Uppsala), I'm curious to experience more. My curiosity for the place melds with my love of all things modern and white (I know I'm on repeat here), and draws me towards the most fantastic Tumblr - From Scandinavia with Love. The eye candy is out of control.

P.S. Have I mentioned that we might take advantage of the sour, rainy weekend coming up by painting a large swath of our house white? I am so excited.

Varpuen

Great design and motherhood? Check out Varpuren for some amazing photos if you're interested in both (and want to practice your Finnish). xo I'm so excited about having found this blog after "meeting" this family via Dwell a few months back.

Sheets

The secret to a good night's sleep is surrounding yourself with lots of white (in my view), including white walls and white bed linens in particular. Though our bedroom is currently painted blue (a decision of the previous owner), I do hope to change the colour out at some point. I take solace in our white bed sheets and duvet though. In an effort to provide the same sense of calm for our son, I've decided to outfit his white crib with a white fitted crib sheet. Here's to hoping that this small step helps improve the likelihood of the little one sleeping through the night. Image via Alvhem Makleri.

28

28 weeks (almost) down, 12 to go. These days our little man is super active (particularly at 3 am), loves eating oranges mid-morning and insists on doing somersaults when mommy and daddy are walking down a steep hill. As the weather slowly warms, our excitement is building to meet our sweet boy.

Profile

Aren't these uses for Facebook's new profile picture layout genius? Thanks for posting the link, Virginia! You can see more here.