Baby's first birthday

Yesterday we had a party for Baby's first birthday. I know all mothers say this but I can't believe he's one already. It's been the best year.

Before we get to the party shots I must warn you this was my first chance to dabble in the world of children's parties and it's just possible I got a little carried away.

Also, (and I'm not proud of this), the beginning of Spring signals a festival of children's parties in my family. The Baby's party was first of the bunch, so I had to make sure it was THE AWESOME. You understand, right?

Warning, many photos follow.

THE SETTING

This is such a gorgeous time of year in Brisbane so we had the whole thing outside on the lawn.

The tassel garlands are made from op-shopped sheets, except the gold fabric which I had to go to Spotlight for. They took me three evenings straight in front of the TV with a pair of scissors to make. I plan to trot them out for Christmas and every festive occasion I can from now on though.

THE FOOD

Mexican layer dip is such a crowd pleaser and so easy to knock up. Just make sure you offer a corn chip with sound structural integrity bedside it.

Potato salad. Obviously.

Ready for the BBQ.

Vegemite sandwiches and fairy bread. These went in minutes. Minutes.

One of the very first things I bought when I found out I was going to be a mum was a set of 0-9 biscuit cutters from Wheel and Barrow. You know those rare life moments when reality matches your daydream perfectly. This.

THE FUN

Skyping absent grandparents

This is my sister. She works for MAC.

She paints a mean tiger face.

A family friend and her daughter made this Hoot piñata. Baby loves some Giggle and Hoot.

THE CAKE

This magnificent creation is the work of my mum. This is just her hobby, she doesn't do this for a living at all. Spectacular, no?

Baby and his mini doppelgänger.

The delicious carnage.

THE PARTY BAGS

I filled most of these with a handful of jelly beans, but also did a few with Little Bellies gingerbread bickies for the tiniest guests.

Baby was such a trooper all day and we all had the best time. Can't wait for next year.

You remind me of the babe. What babe?

It was my birthday on the weekend.

I got some books about chairs and a handbag that perfectly matched my nails. Aren't birthdays nice?

My mum came over and looked after Baby while we went to a matinee movie and it was glorious. Having a baby is marvellous for appreciating tiny acts of freedom.

While we were out she made me this birthday cake from the old Women's Weekly Birthday Cake book.

We flicked through it and reminisced about all the birthday cakes she made me as a child. I can't wait to make some for Baby.

I can't remember the last time I ate a musk stick so I tried one while this was happening. It tasted like perfume.

Meanwhile, Baby has been showing his love of David Bowie and 80s movies.

And has taken up a new residence. We're forwarding all his mail to:
"Car Seat Box House
Middle of the living room rug."

The temperature has dropped the last few days and I'd almost call it chilly. I can't wait for proper coat weather to get here.

I'm addicted to condensed milk chai tea in my giant 0.5L mug. My advice is to be wary of the giant tea mug. Once you start down the path no regular cup of tea will seem sufficient.

Prams are like giant handbags, with babies in them (pram accessories review)

I like accessories and I like list-making.

What I like even more, is accessories that help you be organised. More than that? Making lists of accessories that help you be organised. Shall we? lets.

When I was pregnant with Baby I spent a great deal of time researching what things I would need to nail this mummy business. Nearly eight months down the track these are the things I cannot live without.

Let's start with the pram. This is my Bugaboo Cameleon and it is the bomb. Let no one tell you differently. Mine is an old model purchased second hand on Ebay but just about everything on it is new apart from the chassis. That's because almost every blessed part of this pram is changeable and replaceable. Love it.

I have to tell you, I did not start off with this pram. My research led me to decide that the high end of the pram market was a scam and that I would be just as happy with a cheap and cheerful model. Which is what I bought, and I HATED it. I lasted almost six months with the Steelcraft Agile before I cracked and bought the Bug.

I love it because:

I can turn the seat around so Baby can face me. The lack of this feature in the Agile was one of most pressing reasons I wanted to change. This isn't the Agile's fault, I should have valued this feature higher when I was looking for prams. I didn't think it was important. I was wrong.

The seat recline is super easy to operate with a baby in situ. I used to spend ages squatting and fiddling with the last pram.

Baby can sit up properly straight in this pram and see around him. Even on the most upright setting on the Agile I felt like he couldn't really see out.

Everything is replaceable and Ebay is full of second hand Bugaboo accessories (see above). I haven't gone down the path of buying new colours for mine, but I could. I may.

It's true the fold on this thing is not the easiest out there but I'm such a fan of everything else about it I just don't care.

Prams are like giant handbags, with babies in them. Thus, they need to be well organised. These are the things I use for that.

This Joovy Organiser is made for a different brand of pram but it fits snugly (very snugly) over the handle of the Bug and the chassis can still be folded with it in place. There are a ton of these kind of organisers out there but I dig the flat neoprene look of this one.

It has two drink holders and various little pockets for sliding phones and keys into. Phones and similarly slim items are pretty invisible in these pockets so it's not obvious they are in there at all. I like this feature a lot for when I'm out in crowded places, even if it means I sometimes put the pram in the boot with my phone still in there. The taut neoprene is also handy for clipping things onto. I do this with sunnies and my little insulated food holder when I want to keep it handy.

I love handbags. So I found the idea of carting about the same nappy bag for years instead of being able to change up my collection of bags at a whim so disheartening when contemplating motherhood. The horror!

I've put a lot of thought into ways to around this. Some might say too much.

I have this Bugaboo Organiser attached to the back of the pram seat. It folds up with the pram and stays in the car when not in use. In it I keep:

3 nappies

Wipes

Plastic disposal bags for nappies

Hand sanitizer

Spare outfit for Baby

Towelling face cloth

I find this is all I need for nappy situations at the moment. Nappy bags come with a changing mat but I think these are a waste of space. I keep a light muslin throw in my handbag that can be used for nappy changes, general mess cleaning, shoulder protection or modesty as the need arises.

The Bugaboo Organiser takes care of a large amount of the nappy bag crap when I am out with the pram but what about when I am going somewhere pram-less?

I throw this Melobaby changing wallet in my bag instead.

This holds pretty much the same list of things as the pram organiser and fits in most of my handbags.

There are usually a few other small baby things, like the muslin blanket, sunscreen, a hat, socks and teething rusks kicking about in all my handbags even with these measures but they definitely make it a lot easier to avoid the dread nappy bag.

I am such a nerd I have two kinds of bag clips on this pram to hold said handbags. They are each useful for different kinds of bags.

The clips are these ones and are excellent for attaching bags with ring hooks like the one in the photo.

The hooks are here and are handy for bags with fabric straps or general shopping bags.

The last thing I want to tip my hat to in this list is Lamaze toys. This is Baby's collection. They are generally around $10-$15 from Big W and Baby and I couldn't love them more.

Not only are they all bright and fun with lots of crinkly, squeaky, rattly, grabby bits, they all come with a massive hook that lets you attach them to cots, pram bars, handbags or people as necessary.

I've taken to wearing one on my handbag like a giant Japanese bag charm most places I go and I kind of love it. The horsey is my current fave.

Ugg boots and breastfeeding fashion tips

Autumn finally came to Brisbane last night and the ugg boots came out. I know many people are not a fan of the humble ugg but I love them.

I've always drawn the line at leaving the house while ugged, but last winter I noticed quite a lot of locals in the village getting about with their feet encased in fleecy comfort. This will be our second winter here and I'm thinking when in Rome…

Here is a picture of my obligatory Australian lady with a blog Anzac biscuits. I actually make these quite often by request but these ones have extra Anzac and are full of poignancy.

Before the cold descended Baby and I had a play-date with my high school bestie and her little one. It was suburban and idyllic.

Look. She has chickens!

I gave the $4 blue velvet blazer an outing and I didn't hate it at all.

This ASOS jersey maxi dress is one of my breastfeeding staples. When I first had Baby I was under the impression there would be a wide selection of breastfeeding clothes in the same vein as maternity clothes to choose from. I was sorely disappointed so I had to get creative. This dress is so comfortable and the draping is massively comforting, all it took was a few snips to the shoulders and a few hand-sewn press studs to make it breastfeeding ready.

I've made little alterations to a few dress with unforgiving necklines over the months and it's been nice not to have to live entirely in button ups or sized up singlets. Once it's not longer necessary for me to be able to bare my bosom at a moments notice I'll just stitch them back up again.

I've learnt some other breastfeeding fashion tricks over the last eight months too:

Don't dismiss an elastic topped strapless dress with a cardigan. This strapless Gorman dress is on sale for $50 at the moment. It may or may or be on its way to me in the mail as we speak (OK it may).

Look for sundresses with tie up shoulder straps. The bigger and floppier the better I say.

Timing is key for hungry babies so you want something stylish on your wrist, but also chewable. Get a Swatch watch.

Finally, you cannot own too many singlets. Like an old man in a white Chesty Bonds, you will wear them under everything. My recipe for a failsafe outfit these days goes: singlet, plus drapey oversized top (Cotton On does good ones), plus skinny jeans or leggings, plus a blazer if I want to look fancy. Good to go.