October Bliss

I gave birth to our twins, baby boy S and baby girl P, on October 1st. I'm so glad that I had spontaneous delivery, and labor only lasted four hours. The babies are fine and so am I. I know that it can't be easy for a 19 months old child to all of a sudden become the big brother of two, but J is such a sweet, uncomplaining boy. He enjoys the hours at the "Tagesmutter" and loves having friends over.

Friends, cake & happiness

1: J & T, born on the same day, March 1st 2014. How couldn't they be friends?
2: J's first workpiece. On weekdays, J spends a few hours at a Tagesmutter (a daytime childminder who offers childcare for up to 5 children in her own home). I'm so glad he is easygoing and sociable and loves going there.
3: Poppy seed, red currant & gold. A perfect cake made by Anna.
4: The birthday bouquet I got from my mum.
5: One of the two plum cakes I baked last week. Pregnant women need a piece of cake each day!

This summer

Last October, I posted the last photos here on this blog. I haven't had the energy to take photos, blog or read books over the last few months. We had a hot, hot summer here in Austria. Finally, autumn arrived. Crisp air in the mornings, I missed that. My little son is growing up too quickly. He's already 18 months old and very soon – in a few days – he will be a big brother of two little babies. I'm looking forward to a new season and to being a mum of three.

Fall Colours & Fish Watching

All those beautiful fall colours around make me forget about rain and cold wind. J and I went to the Schönbrunn Zoo. J is absolutely fascinated by water, he loves checking out the aquarium!

Let's search for a Z

There are few nice cafés or other interesting spots in suburban Vienna, but definitely there are some good, hidden places. One of them is Café Z.

Cooking for J, part III

Unexpectedly, parsnips are sweeter than carrots and J really loves their flavors. He quickly fell in love with these roots. If your are a parsnip skeptic, like a huge number of people are, give them a try, they taste great. Last week at the farmers' market, I had a parsnip apple soup for lunch, and it was divine!

Cooking for J, part II

J couldn't wait until his porrige was cooled down. This meal is just his favorite and for me, semolina porridge equals happy child. I remember my mum standing in the kitchen, whisking with a wire whisk just like me today. As a kindergarten kid, I always enjoyed my semolina porridge in a soup plate sprinkled with a little Benco. I think, my mum added some sugar, too, and I loved it when she forgot to stir the porridge and it went lumpy. The best part of eating my porridge was the first spoon cracking the skin on the surface. Today, I'm impatiently waiting for J's leftovers, but there are hardly any.

Cooking for J, part I

Baby food is easy to make and cooking for my seven-month-old little fellow is a pleasure! J already sits up and plays happily with his toys. He's also crawling well and very fast, too, which allows him to explore his surroundings. Our flat needs to get child-proofed – what a challenge!

A Walk, Coffee and Luxemburgerli

A couple of weeks ago, we headed out to the countryside and had a very belated birthday lunch with my sister in-law. Afterwards, we took a walk in the drizzling rain and came back to the cozy restaurant for coffee and cakes. As you can see in the last picture, my dad was very, very kind to me. From his trip to Zurich, he brought home some marvellous Luxemburgerli from Confiserie Sprüngli.

Cards

Bouquets & birthday cards. Well, Scandinavia still amazes me, and my family and friends seem to know that. I got Swedish cards and cookbooks, Swedish food, an Elsa Beskow mug and a merino wool hat for J. My brother always chooses the most beautiful cards, this time one with elefants by Katja Zwirnmann from Graphisches Atelier in Leipzig.