simple summer lunch

If you fry chopped spring onions in olive oil, add a handful of blanched frozen peas, mix together with left-over lasagna sheets cut-up papardelle style, and top it all up with serrano ham, you have yourself a very nice, improvised lunch!

give me a break ;)

Last week the three of us went away for the first time as a family. I was dreading breaking the routine we managed to establish, sleeping in different places, driving long journeys, packing and unpacking twice in a week, etc.
In the end things went pretty smoothly, and we sort of maintained a routine with Baby. We went for a few walks, saw family, visited a craft centre, and ended the trip with a long weekend in Center Parcs surrounded by the local fauna of rabbits and ducks, and more importantly, finally had that massage and facial I was dreaming of - heaven!
One week was enough though, and we were happy to come home to settle back into our own rhythm - we're home people really, and no matter how much we love traveling, we have always loved coming back to our base.Still, here's an idea of what the first family break was like:

project

I am very excited to be working on a special sewing project this week. It is always a bit hectic to get things done properly whilst juggling looking after the house, enjoying maternity leave, and err...well, feeding and making sure that Baby is as happy as can be. Which she is, I am delighted to say. I will never tire of listening to her cooing, watching her sleep, holding her close in the little nook in my neck, smelling her baby hair after her bath. Those things make my day, everyday.
The Lavender household is going to take a little break for the next few days in search of lost sleep time and quality togetherness, but I'll be back soon with - hopefully- more on that little pet project of mine!
In the meantime folks, enjoy the start of summer - it's officially here!

baby mat

Last Christmas I spent a few chilly nights and days assembling this mat for my baby. I thought it would be ideal to change her on, but you live and learn, and after about a week of Baby being with us, the changing mat became a normal playing mat. 

Baby loves to look at it with all the different patterns, and she also gets to have a good kick-about on it everyday. When she is a bit older it should also be used as a bed cover in her cot. All in all, it's now a regular feature in our daily pictures of Baby.

this month I love

♥ a late spring clean in the Lavender household - I am a great believer in the theory that a clean house is conducive to clearer ideas
♥ all the speculation about the Royal Baby...
♥ ...talking of which, have you seen this hilarious photoshoot?
♥ working on a new sewing project - on a big scale! I can't wait to tell you more about it when things are more concrete
♥ old and new recipes - I made Jamie's spring vegetable lasagna from his 30 minute meals series, it was de-li-cious!