An amazing shopping experience!

If there was any doubt about Emilia being a shopper or not, we had confirmation that she absolutely loves shopping when this past weekend we went on a shopping spree all together, the three of us! On Friday afternoon Rob left work a bit earlier than usual and we ventured to London shopping mecca, Piccadilly/Regent's Street. We first stopped at the Waterstones in Piccadilly; their children section is divine and Emilia was overwhelmed! She loved everything, from the books to the Christmas decorations, the circus tent, the pom poms and all the soft toys, especially the mini Miffy. She wandered around the shop screaming with excitement all the time. It was so cute to see her so happy!

We then headed to the wonderful Burberry flagship store in Regent's street and there we bought a nice jacket for Miss Emilia. She absolutely loved the store (well, who wouldn't?!) and was very happy to try on the jackets while admiring herself in the mirror and with the support of many female shop assistants. 

As we were having so much fun, we decided to extend our shopping trip a little big and started wandering around Soho. We eventually passed by Whole Foods and had to stop and get some corn bread! If only they had pumpkin pies, I think we would have bought at least three!

It was such a fun experience that we decided to do it all over again on Sunday, this time during day time and in the less crowded Canary Wharf mall. Here we had lunch at Wagamama where Emilia had her first go at using chopsticks (and wow she was good!), bought blue Hunter wellies for Emilia and waved hello to every single passer-by. Oh, and yes, we got a baloon!

Family days our ar so much fun! Even better if there is some shopping involved ;)

Bank Holiday Weekend (so far)

It's the first of the two May Bank Holiday Weekends. For those of you who don't live in the UK and are not familiar with Bank Holidays, this is the name given to three Mondays of the year, two in May and one in August, where you are off work for no particular reason other than relax and perhaps planning a weekend away! I love Bank Holidays (surprise surprise!) and even if we haven't planned anything special for this long weekend, it is still very nice to spend three full days the three of us together. The weekend actually started even earlier for Emilia and me. I don't work on Fridays so on Friday morning I got both of us ready quite quickly and by 9.00 we were out of the flat and heading to the city. I love walking around the city with Emilia and thankfully the weather was quite nice. We checked a couple of stores and then we bumped into two mums with their strollers and babies who asked us if we were on our way to Little Pickles. I said that I didn't even know what Little Pickles was. One of the two then handed me a leaflet of this new playgroup for toddlers in the area that incidentally was starting that Friday at 10.00am. Emilia and I had had a quite rough night and I was desperate to stay out of the flat for as long as possible. My eyes lit up. So, we followed the mums with their kids and entered the church by the gherkin where the playgroup was held. At the entrance we were welcomed by a bunch of lovely ladies, all smiley and very sweet. We felt at home straight away. I absolutely loved the atmosphere. It was so relaxing that I was even able to enjoy a complimentary cup of coffee with the other mums, while Emilia made herself at home and started playing. The playgroup is run by volunteers at the church, all super lovely people, some with kids and others without. There are lots of activities to choose from and all the toys are brand new. There is the soft area, the library, the lego area, the dressing up corner and different tables with different activities. Emilia chose the table where a nice lady was showing how to make bracelets and together with other kids they coloured biblical images. Emilia picked the representation of the baptism of John and made not one but four bracelets! The playgroup runs from 10.00 to 11.30 every Friday; at 11.05 one othe ladies started singing the tidy up song and all the kids, Emilia included, helped putting all the toys back in their big boxes. And then the central part of the church transformed into a sort of lounge. We all sat on a carpet and listened to another lady who read a passage from the bible for babies showing lots of nice illustrations. We ended the playgroup by singing and dancing over well known rhymes. I can't say enough how much Emilia and I loved it and considering how bad the night before was and how stressed I was at the beginning of the day, I think it was something sent directly from God. 

 

 

 

Saturday was all about strolling. The weather was very nice so in the morning we crossed the Tower Bridge and wandered around St. Katharine's Docks. Always a wonderful place to get lost in. I enjoy looking inside the boats, some people live there! I find it so charming. They have recently built a very modern boat house there and I absolutely love it. Every time I go I try to spy inside :)

 

 

 

In the afternoon we strolled to another favourite spot in the area, Bermondsey street. The villagey atmosphere in that street is so nice and I absolutely love all the independent shops and cafes that make this street so cool. And oh the flower shops...they are so adorable! We bought bright pink peonies that now sit lovely in our living room.

 

 

And finally today we headed East to Canary Wharf where we enjoyed a lovely brunch at Le Pain Quotidien and did some shopping for Emilia at the local mall. We had been to Le Pain Quotidien before and it is the perfect place for toddlers. When we arrived, we were taken to a quite corner in the back of the cafe' and got seated next to three other families, all with little girls. They all looked and smiled at each other, they were so cute. Also, after we ordered our meals, the waiter came back to us with an activity book for Emilia and a plastic cup full of colourful crayons. Yay, Emilia's favourite activity: coloring in! We had such a lovely time and of course it took some time to convince Emilia to leave. Thankfully, she loved running in the mall just as much as sitting, eating her eggs and colouring in her book. 

 

 

My wonderful little girl, you are growing too fast. Please, let's stop the time right now and don't get bigger and older!

Luxe Beach Bags

As our trip to Italy approaches, I am dreaming of beach bags. Both these straw bags below are way out of my league (even on sale!) but if money was just simple paper, I would love to add at least one of the two to my bags collection. A girl can dream.

1. Capability Nevis bag by Anya Hindmarch:

2. Dolce and Gabbana Floral print bag:

Baltimore Unpacked

Today I am home with a bad cold and since my head is so heavy and my brain so slow that I cannot do anything challenging, I have decided to finally unpack the extra bag we had to check in containing all Emilia's gifts and the things I bought while on a shopping spree in Baltimore.

The trip was good on many levels. First of all, Emilia was an absolute angel. Rob and I complain about this poor child too much, I think, but I must admit, she was very very good throughout the trip. The seven hours on the plane went by faster than we anticipated and apart from some grumpiness at take off at Heathrow, she behaved herself. The flight back home was even better as she slept all the way. Too bad mummy and daddy couldn't close their eyes, but that is our problem. Surprisingly, Emilia didn't get jetlagged. I don't know how she does it but both ways she adjusted to the new time zone IMMEDIATELY. One day, she will have to share her secret with me. Also, we subjected her to so many new things, she met loads of new people, went on several car rides and even left her alone for one night (of course with her grandparents though, so she was in good hands!) and she didn't say a thing. No complaints. All in all, she was an absolute delight. 

Ten days went by pretty fast and we had a quite packed schedule. We introduced Emilia to the American side of family and friends, Rob and I spent one day in Washington DC, went out for dinner (compliments of Rob's parents - thank you!), and even attended a wedding. 

 

 

 

The trip to DC was supposed to last two days but we were forced to cut it short due to a snow storm that in the end never arrived. Nonetheless, it was good to be relaxing and wandering around the American capitol. While Rob was in the office, I took the chance to visit a couple of sights I hadn't seen before. First, I made my way to the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress occupies three buildings but I only toured the Thomas Jefferson one. The building is lovely and worth a visit. It is the centerpiece of the library and was opened in 1897. Its artistic decoration, relating to learning, literature, knowledge, creativity, and intellectual achievement, is quite impressive. I really enjoyed walking around the building, I only wished I could spend a couple of ours in the main reading room...next time I'll try to go with a letter from King's and pretend to be doing some research there. 

After visiting the Library of Congress I made my way to the Botanical Gardens. I loved to immerse myself into the diversity of plants and flora from all over the world, from jungle to desert to primeval paradise, the indoor gardens and gallery offered the perfect scenario for an indoor break. And then, I felt so re-energised  that I walked all the way to Georgetown, passing by all the museums forming the Smithsonian, the Monument, and the White House. Once in Georgetown I treated myself to a nice lunch at Dean and De Luca, cupcakes from Sprinkles, and of course some shopping. In fact, the word that summarises this trip the best is shopping. As I said at the beginning of this post we had to check in an extra bag, but it was worth it. Judge it for yourselves...

Emilia's shopping:

Vale's shopping:

Gap finds

On a very short trip to the mall at Canary Wharf yesterday I was attracted by a couple of things from the GAP. Perhaps because I have had enough of winter, I needed something this colourful to brighten up my wardrobe! And of course, I bought a pair of polka dots trousers for the little one as well.

1. Canvas neon pink-trim bag:

2. Ditzy dot green scarf:

3. Mustard skinny dot baby jeans:

And now I am browsing the site and they have oh so many nice things...may need to make an order soon :)

Inside Baby O's wardrobe

Baby O's wardrobe keeps growing and growing. Between all the gifts that she is already receiving and me not being able to resist to any temptation, I believe she already has more clothes than her mummy! 

For now, her most popular items are onesies, both short sleeves and long, one-pieces, leggings and tops. She also has loads of knitted cardigans, dresses and skirts.

Her collection of cardis

I have decided to take a picture of her every day for a year and then make a book, it will be a nice gift to give her when she turns 16, I think. All these clothes will give me inspiration for her daily outfits! 

The last purchase was made just a couple of days ago. I absolutely hate UGG boots for adults, I find them extremely unattractive, however, I have a soft spot for the baby version. So, I bought baby O her first pair of boots, size 0 (0-6 months). I chose the classic chestnut colour, aren't they adorable? They will be perfect for our shopping days out in winter!

Toms Toms Toms

I have blogged about my passion for Toms before. 

I own a couple of Toms already but if I could, I would buy every single colour and pattern version of them. They are so incredibly comfortable and versatile. And it makes me feel good to buy a pair of shoes knowing that another pair will automatically be sent to a child in need.

Yesterday, on my way home from work I passed by Office and saw a lovely new pattern that I hadn't spotted before. You know how much I love polka dots and all shades of blue, so these shoes seem to have been designed just for me.

Believe it or not, I didn't stop to buy them. I was tired and wanted to go home. However, they may find their way to my flat soon! :)

And since we are on the subject of polka dots and comfortable shoes, have you seen the new collaboration between Henry Holland and Superga? It's an explosion of polka dots!

I am not sure I could wear the high ones (2790 Flatform), as cool as they look, but the classic Superga (2750) are quite cute. Now, the question is: pink, green, or blue?

All that glitters...

Oh, I am in love with these Miu Miu loafers!

I like both colour options, blue and gold, but I think the blue ones are just delicious. 

Sadly, they are a bit pricey for me, and I can't justify such an expense at the moment. However, if they go on sale, I can't promise to be able to resist the temptation :)

Wahaca and shopping

Yesterday Rob and I went to Westfield in Stratford to do some shopping. Around 11.15am we left the house with a list of things to buy and were on a mission to buy as many items on the list as possible. Yes, you guessed it right, mostly baby stuff, she is sucking all our energy and money already! 

Going to a mall is not what I would call one of our favourite pastimes, in fact, we rather hate it; however, it is convenient to shop in a place with lots of stores condensed in the same area. So, we went. Before getting wild shopping we checked The Street, the outdoor area where all the nice restaurants are, and after wandering a little we opted for Wahaca. We both fancied some good Mexican food and I had heard from friends that this was a nice place. The atmosphere is absolutely amazing, very cool, colourful and vibrant. It resembles the style of a Mexican market, where you can eat reasonably priced, fresh and tasty food.

It was our first time so everything on the menu sounded delicious. We finally opted to share black beans and cheese quesadillas and marinated chicken taquitos; we then each ordered chicken burritos. To drink, a deliciously fresh Citrus Frizz, with lime, mint and sparkling water. Everything was absolutely tasty. We definitely recommend this place and we will be back ourselves! 

Shopping with a full stomach is much easier. We weren't able to cross everything off the list but we bought some essentials, such as Avent binkis (it took us forever to choose what we thought may be the right ones...honestly, this is hard!),  nightgowns for the hospital, maternity nursing bras and a couple of big dresses for me (still not maternity, I try to avoid those!), some baby clothes and of course Sophie La Girafe, so highly recommended! Rob enjoyed some good shopping for himself too, mostly toiletries and underwear, but at least it wasn't just a day out for the girls!

We got home around 5.30pm and I was literally exhausted. I am not used to being out for so long anymore and everything tires me out. Unfortunately, I even had to take a paracetamol as I developed a bad headache. Thank God I am working from home this week!

What Kind Of Wellies Are You?

It's pouring down in London today and I wonder what kind of wellies you wear?

Are you a classic type? For this, look no further than Hunter.

Or a designer type? I am wearing these by Tory Burch today, for example:

Are you a cute type? Joules have some great options:

Or are you a funky type? Again Joules have some nice ones.

It's in days like these that I wonder why I am not roasting at the beach in Pescara!?!

P.S. It's currently 40 C degrees in Pescara. My mum and grandmum are coming to London tomorrow and will be staying for a couple of weeks. They will welcome some breeze, right?

A Dorky Reaction

I was on my way to the office this morning when I bumped into British fashion designer Henry Holland. Instinctively I felt to say: "Oh, Hello!" but then thankfully, I was able to control myself. Wait a second: he doesn't know me??! I felt very sheepish. Two seconds later I am annoyed at myself for not saying anything. I should have said hello, I thought, what's the harm in that!? I recognised him and felt to say hi, I honestly don't know why I stopped. It would have been cool and perhaps he would have liked it, and who knows…we may have become friends and he may have given me free clothes and invited me to catwalks and London Fashion Week…Dreaming apart...

He was wearing his perfect uniform, jeans shorts and a navy jacket and was chatting with a blond friend (why are all his best friends blond? See Pixie Geldof and Agyness Deyn).

Living in London, this is not the first time I happen to see celebrities in the streets; nontheless, I still can't act cool! Damm me! What's your reaction when you see a celebrity? Do you shout at them and ask to take a picture with them? Do you act cool and pretend not to even notice them? Or do you feel sheepish and do not really know what to do?

P.S. Henry Holland fashion line, House of Holland, can be a bit pricey but do you know about his cheaper collection for Debenhams, H! by Henry Holland? The collection has HH's signature all over it, with its funky T-shirts and edgy clothes. Worth a look.

Cute Dress

I haven't been to Topshop in a while...time to pay a visit? Love this cute dress.