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I just saw that two more copies of my art books sold!! One copy of each book! I am so thrilled and am sending a big 'Thank You!' to the second lovely mystery person this way!!! This is absolutely wonderful and exciting and I hope you will enjoy your books!!

It was hot alright since last weekend which is why I wasn't able to sit in at the machine at all and write or email anyone because I might have melted!! Last weekend was torturous with 35 and 37.5 degrees Celsius... with errands we needed to run it was like walking through an oven with the air so thick one could have cut it with a knife... just disgusting. Thank you Willis Haviland Carrier for inventing air conditioning which kept our bedroom cool and helped me keep my sanity. It is slowly cooling off being cloudy and slightly muggy. I am grateful that baby will come soon still though there are still 3 more months of summer weather ahead of us... eek!

Week 39... we are both continuing to be healthy and happy!! ~ Gotta go now...I'm still melting sat here... 

click to enlargeI just noticed that someone bought a copy of Golden Dog and Little White Cat in a softcover edition!!! I am sending a huuuuge THANK YOU this way to the wonderful mystery person who purchased it!! Wow! You just made my day and I hope you will enjoy it!!!

Less than 2 weeks to go... just over 1 week until my parents arrive (hooray! I haven't seen them in two years and hell would freeze over before they'd miss out on the big event of their first grandchild being born)... my desk is gone, for good, given away to a man with a white beard and a pick up truck last weekend... this weekend is supposed to be a hot one with 30 degrees Celsius and I am already panicky and horrified by the mere thought of it: coping with that much heat when the internal little heater is on on top of it is not a good combination, nevermind the swollen feet... I'll likely hide in an air conditioned store somewhere nice.

click to enlargeTwo days ago this crocheted blankie I had ordered from Carina in England arrived in my mail box, it is so soft and little one will love it!! There is another blankie with flowers and bees on it on its way to me from Di up in Scotland (we did a swap)! And a few months ago I tried working down my fabric
And the other side ~ click to enlargestash further by sewing a light summer
One side ~ click to enlargeblankie with my linen and soft cotton fabrics (the flowers are inspired by Di) that has no batting inside. I am sure there will be a few more blankies for little one to come maybe and I love it! One can never have too many blankies. All these cuddly blankies are making me even more tired now so I'll go and have a lie down catching up on all the sleep I miss out on every night. I'll catch up with you soon... zzzZZZ...

This year our garden looks especially beautiful, green and lush thanks to all the rain and the coldest month of June B.C. has ever hadon record (at times it felt more like November)! The plants are loving it and for the first time in our 2 years in this place the honeysuckle plant has had blossoms that bloomed (the previous year the blossoms were ant infested before they could grow properly)! And it has climbed and grown with a speed over the month alone that one could almost watch it grow and climb up and over the trellis, so amazing!

Baby's wall hanging which I finished quite some months ago is finally hanging in its spot above the crib. It's the largest piece I've hand sewn so far and it was a lot of fun! It was great to see all the squares seamed together and finally hanging.

I began this project for above little one's crib before I was even pregnant and seeing it now in its spot is wonderful. You can see some of the animals on the squares here. We hung it a little bit higher so that it is out of reach for little one once she gets old enough to sleep in the crib and the curtain rod from Ikea was the perfect length for it.

Since it's so much fun and time is running let me show you yesterday's freshly picked flowers... pale pink lilies. I arranged them in an old red clay pitcher and set it on my dining room table where I can enjoy their sweet scent while eating a bowl of strawberries in the morning.   (-;

As for the zen in our 'house' (I like to call it our house despite it being a 2 bedroom flat), we are getting there. On the weekend we'll get a new desk for the living room, the Mac will be moved onto it from this one in the bedroom here which we'll get rid off (sniff, because it's my art desk so I will likely use the dining room table in the future... should I have the time). So there is still a lot to be done also besides moving furniture around but it's not the end of the world should it all not get done in time.

I have also let go of my 'goals' as far as my art is considered. I had tried to accomplish them to the best of my ability over the past year and since all I got back from publishers were rejections I gathered it wasn't meant to be... yet maybe, everything happens for a reason after all. There are way more important things waiting for me on the horizon and I love it!! The artist in me might just go on a bit of a maternity leave when the time comes.

Only three weeks to go...

I am trying different things, now that my white oil pastel stick is only this small stump...solution for the white: use white paper! I somehow felt inspired to turn my textile flowers into drawings... keeping it simple. I love simple and uncluttered these days probably because my head and life are so full with things. This way it allows me to keep the balance. Simple is good!
If I could I would even completely empty out our house (apart from baby's room)  until the rooms looked like Hotel rooms: free of any detachment or clutter, just clarity and space to breathe and think...

Last week I ate the first cherries of this year and they were so delicious!! Knowing how good it is for little one makes them even more delicious. I also enjoy eating strawberries either sprinkled on a green leaf salad with seeds and nuts or have them with a couple of small scoops of frozen yoghurt.

The days are getting busier and busier, the 'train' is speeding up! Our preparations are coming  along beautifully and baby's nursery is almost completely set. The prenatal course is finished and the breastfeeding course last weekend was great. I am adjusting to my more and more interrupted sleep at night. Even there my body is preparing me for feedings after the birth with even more frequent trips to the bathroom every 1-2 hrs. and last night I managed to sleep for 3 hrs. straight in between which was wonderful.

There is little time for me to paint or none at all actually. My sketchbook is filling up catching all the ideas that swirl around in my head.