Little Update

It's so hard to believe that it's already mid July, Little L is nearly 18 months and time just keeps a flying!

On 2 May, Little L took her first steps and has been running like a pro ever since. Day by day her gorgeous personality comes through in abundance and getting to know this little being still remains the most amazing and exciting part of my life!

Here are some of my favourite Little L'isms:
- filling in the words to hairy mclairy, twinkle little star, 5 little ducks eg: 'hercules morse as big as a..........OSS'
- singing la la la with me
- poking out her tongue
- cooking in her kitchen
- dancing to 'johnny works with one hammer'
- saying 'oh' when I tell her something
- imitating me spitting when I brush my teeth
- answering 'yah' when I ask her if she's beautiful, gorgeous and pretty
- blowing kisses and making kissy sounds
- chasing dogs at the park saying 'oof oof'
- what's your name? 'yaya'
- saying 'uh oh' and sticking her hands out when I turn the TV off then using the remote control to try and turn it back on
- dancing
- doing 'quack quack' with her little hand
- what does a duck say? 'duck' and what does a bee say? 'beeeeee'
- playing with her 'babies', giving them a bottle and putting them to sleep in their pram
- feeding caviar, her fish (and the other 4 fish in the tank)
- jumping (which really is squatting and sticking her bum out)
- the many little words that she says
- passing me the plastic animal that I ask for
- understanding absolutely everything that I say and carrying out basically any instruction that I give her
- her obsession with books
- going down slides
- saying plisssss (such good manners!)
- everything else that I've managed to forget

Although she's being really cheeky with her day sleeps (one day she wants to sleep in the morning, the next day in the afternoon, the next day not at all and the next day for 3.5 hours), she's still as delicious as ever, challenging but completely lovable!!!!

I don't think I could be more obsessed with this child if I tried!
A million kisses to you my baby girl XX

M.I.A

I can't believe that it's been so long since my last post. Looking back to that time when we were about to embark on our first family overseas trip (to New York) and preparing to sell our very first home, I realize that little did we know how much was in store for us!

In short, the New York trip was AMAZING, the house sold and we even managed to find a new one! The new abode needed some work, and after installing some brand new polished floorboards, downlights and giving it a squeaky clean paint job, it has really become home. We have immensely enjoyed the pool, spa and sauna that came as part of the package, and have already managed to host more than a handful of parties and get togethers. It dawned on me last week (on my birthday) whilst having a family dinner at our place, that this is what I have always dreamed of. As my family sat at one long, candlelit table, happily chatting and eating away, I found myself thinking, could life be any better?

In addition to world travelling, house purchasing and renovating, I also returned to work in February. I find myself baffled by how much my own life has changed, whilst everything at work has somehow remained the same. I must admit that it's quite nice to have the time to use my brain and mix with other adults, not having to organise my day based on eating, sleeping and pooping schedules. However, I always seem to be counting down the minutes until I can come home to my precious girl - my time with her is now so much more appreciated!

This brings me to my Little L. How my beautiful child has grown and bloomed in these last few months. I watch her in utter amazement as she bum shuffles and cruises her way around, with her endless chatter and precious smiles, she warms my heart like no other person can.

She now has 8 teeth, and celebrated her first birthday in January. Her current words are: hi, more, dada, mama, baba, papa, pop, ta, yes (sssss), raaa, mooo, baaa and buk buk, not to mention how she pops her lips when I ask her 'what does a fish say?'. She also says her name, puts her head to the side and makes a face when asked to do so and wobbles her head when asked to 'dance dance dance' . She claps, points, shakes hands, gives high 5, cuddles, kisses, fake coughs and basically copies everything that she sees me saying and doing.

I am constantly amazed by the funny newbies she seems to come up with on a daily basis, and I can't believe that one day soon, she will be a fully walking and talking toddler. How time does fly!
I promise to blog again soon...
xx

It's so hard to choose between the hundreds of photos that we have taken in the last few months, but here are some in an attempt to summarize all that has gone on:


Times Square






Little L hearts NY



The humble abode



Pierced ears!



Happy birthday little ladybug!



Birthday girl








Little L can you make a face?



First haircut





Hawaiian princess





Bliss....

Selling!

As if having a baby and starting a business doesn't put enough on my plate, hubby and I have decided to sell our lovely home! Even though we love our place with all of our hearts, we know that it's time to move on. I know that actually moving out is a long way away, but yesterday I went for a walk with Little L, and found myself already lamenting our homely home :( For now, I'm sure that copywriters, photographers and auction preparation will keep me too busy to be sad, but in the meantime, I want my little house to know how many good times it has provided my little family with, and we will miss it dearly!

Welcome little chomper!

I first noticed the outlines of emerging chompers in Little L's swollen gums several weeks ago, but to my delight, yesterday one finally pushed through. After Little L decided to pull my finger into her mouth and suck on it, I felt that tell-tale sharpness and then went in for a look. There sitting gorgeously was a brand new shiny pearly white, and a second clearly on the way. How time does fly!!!

Spring is in the air!

There are few things that make you feel better than those gorgeous first few Spring days. It's as if everybody is coming out of hibernation. Beautiful colors start to appear, people seem to smile more, and that warm feeling that you get when the sun touches your skin is just delicious. A couple of days ago, I decided to embrace such a day by taking Little L to the park for a couple of hours. She absolutely fell in love with sitting on the warm green grass, playing with her doggies and having a turn on a swing set. Ahhhhhhhhhhh joy!

Little L bibs

I've been playing around with bibs lately and have made some limited edition pieces using characters Cosmo, Pete, Dolly and Lyly. So far, the bibs have gotten a great response, and I'm hoping to come up with more characters, shapes and styles to add to the range. Of course, no post is complete without Little L modeling her wares....

Sneak Peek

Here's a sneak peek of Little L sporting Little L. She is wearing two growsuits layered on top of one another, both made out of stunning organic cotton from the USA. The bottom layer is a long sleeved hooded growsuit, and the top layer is a short sleeved growsuit with a butterfly applique. In this way, Little L gets extra wear out of the short sleeved growsuit as she can wear it in the winter as a top layer, and in the summer on its own. All products are designed and made in Australia.

Bogged down

It's been a hellish past few weeks, this being the reason for my slackness in updating my blog. Firstly, I got the bad news from the trademarks office that my 'yaya' trademark was too close to some Japanese company's trademark - they sell quilts and blankets, not even baby products but there is the belief that consumers will be deceived into believing that our two companies are related. Instead of fighting this for the next 15 months, I have decided to change the name of my label to 'Little L'. I've checked google and even though there is a littlel.com, it's not a website that's in use and it's not a business that is trading in anything even closely related to baby products. I also conducted an ATMOSS search, and no such trademark exists. I feel like I'm ready to make the jump, and have already purchased the domain littlel.com.au - but my experience has left me a bit scarred. These little setbacks can be so disheartening, and on top of that the real Little L has been battling a disgusting virus, breaking my heart with her high fevers and runny nose. She's been wanting lots of cuddles and reassurance, and I have been more than happy to oblige. I can't wait for my little one to feel better, and getting her better is my main focus at this stage. Once that's done, it'll be all systems go in reprinting business cards, labels, swing tags and updating my blog, facebook and twitter accounts (yep, the name change will cost me a pretty penny and a whole lot of time!) Stay tuned... xo

Yaya no longer, Little L is here to stay!

Due to some trademark issues, I have decided to change the name of my baby range from Yaya to Little L. Obviously, there is no need to explain the meaning behind my new name - since Little L is my inspiration, it's only fair that the products be named in her honor! Now to change all the labels, swing tags, business cards, domain names, blogs, twitters, facebooks etc. I think it's only natural to experience these minor setbacks, right?

Blog it forward: Update

Several posts ago, I wrote about blogging it forward. After perusing the Thea & Sami blog (as I often do), I noticed that Thea too was participating in this awesome handmade gift giving activity. I rushed to be one of the first five people to leave a comment on Thea's blogpost, and lucky me, I scored myself this beautiful screen printed dishtowel. Check out Thea's blog as well as her website where you will find gorgeous eco fabrics and homewares!

First official sale!

I'm proud to announce that even before I have setup my website, and even before I have completed my sample range, I have already made a sale!!! Several people have asked to buy some of my current sample pieces, and I have sadly had to reject their offers, as these pieces need to be referenced for future use. However, when my beloved 'Roses' approached me and asked for one of my blankets, I couldn't refuse, especially since it was to be a gift for their precious niece. I'm very proud of my products and I hope that 'baby S' enjoys her new blanket, and one day passes it on to her own minis.

Eco Coffee

I'm not one to preach, but I thought it would be useful to mention a product that I love, a product that can make a big change. After visiting the coffee waste calculator site I was shocked to realize how much wastage and pollution is caused by disposable coffee cups. At the same time, I had tried different re-usable cups and found that they were either too bulky, too dorky or would end up leaking coffee all over my outfits (especially when I was wearing white). Finally, I managed to find an eco-friendly re-usable coffee cup that is a solution to all of the above, the KeepCup. The KeepCup is the first barista standard re-usable coffee cup and not only is it spill proof, dishwasher/microwave safe and lightweight, it's also simply gorgeous!! But perhaps the best feature of the KeepCup is that it's designed and manufactured in Australia. You can get your own KeepCup online the KeepCup website or at Bluebag, and remember as the producers of KeepCup themselves say 'many small acts will make a phenomenal difference'.

Inspiring Bloggers

I stumbled upon a beautiful blog the other day. Do yourself a favor and visit Her Library Adventures where you will be transported to a world of creativity, imagination and whimsy. Sophie Isobel, the blog author, is an English teacher who loves reading and in her spare time, making beautiful brooches such as those pictured above (which she sells in her Etsy shop). It is also evident from her blog page that Sophie is a seriously talented photographer. I just love how her brooch spring collection is photographed using a tea party theme. You can win one of these delightful pieces by visiting Sophie's blog and leaving a comment on her 'Open for Business and a Giveaway' post. Good times!

Samples

I finally saw some samples from my manufacturer and I'm pretty damn happy. My vision is finally coming to fruition and it feels rather nice! At the same time, it's so nerve-racking, especially when I think about all the work that still needs to be done. HELLLLLPPP!

Once I have pressed and labelled all of my samples, I'll put up some pics - keep in touch xo

For women

I made this butterfly on the Amnesty International website in support of Japanese women who were forced into sexual slavery by Japanese soldiers during World War II. Here's an excerpt from the Amnesty website:

In the year 2009, you'd think governments would have well and truly faced the atrocities of World War II. Yet up to 200,000 women who were forced into sexual slavery by Japanese soldiers have still not received an adequate apology - let alone compensation - from the Japan Government.

Their chosen symbol of hope is the butterfly. We're going to cover the web in beautiful butterflies in the run up to August 15th - the anniversary of WWII's end - to highlight this hidden tragedy. Each butterfly will represent a message to the Australian PM to pass a motion urging the Japan Government to recognise and compensate survivors. In all this time, Australia is one of the few Allied countries that hasn't stood up and called the Japanese Government to account.

Show your support by creating your own butterfly and spreading the word via the web in honor of not just these women, but women all over the world who face any form of adverse circumstances.

Knitting Frenzy

Just recently, I went on a knitting frenzy using my latest obsession - NATURAL MATERIALS.  I made two blankets for Little L using hemp, soy, milk fiber, organic cotton and bamboo.  These blankets are so beautiful and soft, and combine several different textures. The cable knit blanket took about 3 weeks (bearing in mind, Little L and my life in general don't give me much time to knit!), and the purple and green blanket took about a week. I'm looking to do crocheted borders on both, but first I'll have to teach myself how.....