Meet Mom Marta from Lisbon...

 

My name is Marta, I´m a fashion designer and I live in Lisbon, Portugal. I have a gorgeous son with 9 months, his name is António.
My passion has always been fashion and I currently work in my studio which is an extension of my home. I have an online shop and I usually write in my blog. I love to work with patterned fabrics. Probably because I love color. I work a lot with african and asian fabrics. I always buy some fabrics when I travel.

 
Living
I live in a sunny apartment with my husband, son and our 3 cats. I love this house because our previous apartment had no natural light. This one has tons of light and it´s always warm, even in winter! Although I love this apartment, I dream about having a house with a garden, so my son can play outside.
Here in Portugal we´re lucky ´cause we have sun even during winter, so people take their kids to outside playgrounds. Even so, I dream about having a house with a beautiful garden to lay around and watching my kid play.

I love decorating! Since our previous apartment was so dark, I decided I wanted to have a bright new one, so our walls are all white. For now! Maybe one day we´ll change.
When I was pregnant I decided I didn´t want a blue or pink baby room, so we painted one wall in a very bright grey with white clouds. The other walls are white. Everything else has colour: the baby quilt I made, the wall stickers, etc...

I usually buy LivingEtc, Elle Decor (UK) and AD (Spain). They are my favorite magazines.
My son usually plays in the living room, but if we leave the room, we comes following us crawling. He ´s discovering everything and we are now taking some "extreme measures" to make our home baby proof. In my neighborhood I love to buy vegetables and fresh fruit from a local market.

General and Upbringing
I always think on 2 sides about raising a child: raising them in the city or in the countryside. A part of me would like to raise my child in the country, and maybe one day it will happen. But Lisbon it´s a good city to live and raise a child: it´s sunny, not violent and culturally open. So it´s not a bad city to raise kids.

I don´t have just one role model, I have many: my father, my mother, my husband and some friends for various reasons. My father is a leader, ambitious and generous. My mother was extremely affectionate, I have the best memories of her and she´s a true role model has a mother. My husband is passionate about life, never quits anything and is super amusing.

A perfect day with my children is watching him play and hearing his laughters. It makes my day!
Honestly, I don´t have any favorite books about "how-to-raise-your-kid" values. I believe every child is different and methods depend on your child personality. Also, the best mother tool a woman can have is her own instinct. Of course now and then I have some doubts, and when that happens I usually visit babycenter.com.
I think the most important value is Love. Love is never too much. Being affectionate and showing I´m always here for my son is a priority. Also, I want to show him the importance of being tolerant and not prejudiced with others.

Craft and DIY projects:
To keep the house clean when crafting, I always try to clear up everything when I end crafting. I think this is the secret to find everything tidy when I want to start crafting. It´s a simple method, but it works for me! While crafting, forget being tidy! :) Worry about that in the end!
I prefer to name myself as a fashion designer, but I´m also a bit crafter. I usually take some ideas from other blogs, but I always change them my way.
Well... my kid is only 9 months, so he´s too small for kids crafting so I´m not there yet :) But I guess I will soon discover some great projects to make in a few months!! I do want to keep everything, so one day I´ll give him his masterpieces!

Playing and relaxing:
I have a funny story about celebrating birthdays: I´m not a fan of big parties, but last year I was 37 weeks pregnant and decided to plan a big birthday party for me. I planned everything, It was gonna be a great party... but my son decided to be born the day before!! So I had no party :)
This year I want to reunite everyone again so I can have my birthday party. But usually I like to celebrate special days with a few special people, cooking something or eating out in a nice restaurant.

I don´t have any musical instruments in my house, but I have a passion for pianos...
My favorite books for children are Anita´s. They were part of my childhood and I love them, hope my kid will love them too.

Cooking
I am absolutely a cook and food lover! I don´t eat meat, only some fish and vegetarian food. I love to try new recipes and I create a lot of them too. In fact, I have a secret food blog. I´m not prepared to reveal it to the world yet, but one day I will!! I also love desserts. This is my favorite dessert blog.

Travelling

I love to travel as a backpacker, with nothing booked. I prefer simple things and seeing non touristic spots. Since António was born I made one trip with my husband to Morocco without our son. We wanted an adventurous trip, and our son is to young to enjoy this kind of trip, so we decided to go just the 2 of us. But we real want to travel with him one day. We still don´t know what kind of trip it will be, but we are already thinking about this. Any suggestions?  We already made some small trips around Portugal with António and we try to pack only essential stuff, but with a baby it´s difficult. We have to be organized and leave the non important stuff behind.

..Marta Mourao..
..Marta Mourão blog..

Meet mom Ana from Mozambique living in Portugal...

My name is Ana, I was born in Mozambique and I live in Portugal since 4 years old. I live in Lisboa with my 3 year old daughter and my husband. I have a degree in Graphic Design and in the moment I'm fully dedicated to my passion, crafts and children illustration. PinkNouNou.

In the last few years the work I was doing as a graphic designer wasn’t fulfilling me, I needed to do something more creative and more “handmade” (a computer is a very useful tool but...) - and I always loved fabrics... All of this together with my constant love for children illustration books lead me to the crafts world :) I started with small softies all sew by hand, then bought a sewing machine and never stopped. I’m always drawing new character softies, thinking in new “products” for babies and small children's. It's good to be passionate about your work but I find I never have enough hours in my day... I'm going to have a new line - PinkNounou Home - of gift products for weddings – in about a month!!

What kind of house do you live in, are you and your family happy here or is there anything you all terribly miss ...?
We live on the ground floor of an apartment with a front and back terrace, we still didn't find the house of our dreams so an apartment with outdoor space was very important. I think my daughter is happy :) she likes to jump a lot and run so if she has the space for it... I and my husband would prefer to live in a house with a big and very green garden... But behind our house there is a small park, so... and it's a very calm neighbourhood.

Do you like to spend time on decorating your home and your daughter's room?
In the last years I spent more time with the children's room, I'm always adding, taking, moving around,  it's fun! In the rest of the house not so much know, just little details, sometimes I found a beautiful plate or an old set of glasses in an antique fair and I can't resist!

Where do you look for interior inspiration, favorite magazines, websites, blogs?
Colors are always an inspiration for me to everything, and I like to read Blue Design magazine, décor8 blog, Design Sponge blog, ferm Living, Poppytalk, Mocoloco...

What is your daughters favorite item in your house?
She likes to play with  3 heart shaped fabric boxes that I have in my room, also my books and to jump in our bed.

What places in your new neighborhood do you like to go to for shopping?
The small grocery stores and the fruit market.

What's it like to raise a child in your town?
It's good, but we would prefer to live in a more small and friendly place.

Who do you consider is a good example for your daughter?
I think me my husband and other members of our family are good examples :)

What is your idea of a perfect day with your daughter?
Going for a one day trip to a beautiful and calm place and rest while she plays!

Can you tell us a funny story, quote or remark your daughter recently made or happened?
A few weeks ago our children went to her new (pre) school, in the first day she was very excited, in the second day when my husband was driving her to the school, she asked him where were they going (because she knew that wasn't the way to her old school...) and he answered her that they were going to the new school, so she said: -  Again?????!!  ;)

Are their any books you can recommend for parents and how to raise your children?
I liked to read “Touchpoints” from Berry Brazelton and “O Grande Livro do Bebé” from a portuguese author called Mario Cordeiro. But in the end there are many things that aren't in books and children aren't all the same so each parent experience trought the years should be a good book.

Can you mention some of your 'how-to-raise-your-kid' values?
Be honest, be patient, have a sense of humour, be a good example and listen to your child.

What kind of DIY projects do you like to do with your daughter?
She's still very young, but I like (and she loves) making cakes, making cards for Easter and Xmas.

Any tips for keeping the house clean when crafting?
Take only the things that you know you will need and store them as soon as possible.

Are you a crafter or DIY person?
I'm more of a craft person.

Books, websites, local shops you can recommend to get tips and ideas for kids crafting?
PurlBee, Nuno+ , Lovelydesign blog, The Crafty Crow, a local store called Respigar, Fem Manuals blog.

What do you do with all the projects your daughter made at home or in school?
Some are in her closet, and others are in the kitchen, on the fridge. And the projects from Easter, Christmas, Mother's and Father's day are all over the house.

How do you like to celebrate birthdays and other special days in your house?
In our house with family and friends, lots of food and cakes... and lots of children running around.

What are favorite games in your home?
Puzzles, cubes, alphabet memory games.

What kind of sports do your daughter likes to do and are you very involved?
We used to go to the swimming pool with her since she was six months.

Are there musical instruments in your house?
Yes, a violin - mine, a few years ago I started having lessons, but then I had to stop, and now I'm a little/very out of practice – and an organ from my husband that my daughter also likes to “play” ;). Oh and of course there are hers instruments: a xylophone, a flute, a little piano.

What are all time favorite books?
The ones she really, really loves in the moment are the Little Red Riding Hood by Christian Guibbaud (a textured book) and the Wolf & the Seven Little Goats by Nathalie Choux (also a textured book). I like (and she also likes) the books from the collection “Martine” by Gilbert Delahaye and Marcel Marlier, several books from a portuguese publisher called Planeta Tangerina, and books from Montse Gisbert like “El Bebe más Dulce del Mundo” and “Les désirs de Lune”.

What are nice activities you can do with children in your place and what could you recommend when people are visiting?
Going for a walk along the beach; going to the Oceanario (a big aquarium where you can see marine animals from several habitat); riding a bike on the Park das Naçoes; the Serafina Park in Monsanto.

What movies does your daughter like to watch, is there one from your childhood you would love to show them too?
She likes Madagáscar, Ice Age, Shawn the Sheep episodes, and we have showed her the Muppets and also Tom & Jerry – she loves them!! 
How do they prefer to spend their leisure time?
Playing in the park, in the beach, or in the house jumping a lot, watching a movie.

Are you a 'cook' or 'food' lover or both?
I'm both! Just a little more of a “food” lover...

What kind of place do you like to go to on vacation with and or without your daughter?
I LOVE to travel so I like to go to other European countries, but I also love to see more exotic places. I like to see ancient cities, modern cities, and I also love mountain landscapes with a lot of green :) and a beautiful, paradisiac beach  now and then. I also like camping and this year we went camping for the first time with our daughter, she loved it!

Do you keep some sort of travel journal?
I use to make my albums with photos, cards, tickets from museums, shows, transports, food... I use to keep everything... In the last years I've become a little lazy...

What kind of souvenir can she bring back home?
A children's book from - and written in the original language – I use to do that before my daugther was born and continue.

How do you prepare for a trip, any useful tips?
Not many :( I just try to make a list some time before so that when I remember something I write it and hopefully when I pack I don´t forget anything.

What place do your daughter love to go to?
She's very small so she loves to go anywhere has long is with us and we are going to the beach.

Tips for traveling with a plane or a long-time trip on the road with children?
Music, water and some cookies help, but in planes with our daughter is difficult because she never seats still... and if there are kids in the front or back seat of us it´s a complete disaster...

{All the beautiful images were taken by her photographer friend Catarina Zimbarra}

..PinkNouNou blog..
..PinkNouNou shop..
..PinkNouNou etsy shop..