October 31st, 2008
…Today, not so much.
Yesterday I woke up, took my shower before Anthony, got myself into normal clothes (a dress, no less, that I wore for the whole day!). I dressed the girl, fed her, changed her, fed her, changed her, had some tummy time, fed her…
I did a few loads of laundry, ran the dishwasher. I know, these tasks are manned by machines, but it’s the issue of remembering to do them that snags me most days.
I watered the lawn. Our new baby green sprouts that light up the house from the outside. This has been months in the making. Watering seems like a small feat, but has somehow turned into a large daily task for me that I haven’t been able to meet very often.
We made it to the grocery store, just me & Ella, by ourselves! The idea of this caused me much stress, as up until now we’ve had Ant or family with us everywhere we’ve gone. But we did it, & came home with her first tiny pumpkin, to boot.
I cooked dinner, then made dessert. I’d woken up determined to make Anthony dinner, & I’d wanted the house to smell of cinnamon & apples when he walked in the door. But the apple crisp was best eaten fresh out of the oven & it would not do to have dessert at 4:30. Well, it would have…apple crisp was had for breakfast today & an afternoon snack too, & I will tell you it tastes delightful any time of day. It was refreshing to be back in the kitchen whipping up comfy foods. All the while, Ella slept soundly on her Boppy (her new favorite lounger). The only thing missing was a proper apron.
We dished up & dined, then dove into the apple crisp. I thought maybe it could make up for our lacking “Baby Bistro,” so I pulled out our wedding goblets & filled them with sparkling pear juice. Cheers to our new bundle & a yummy fall dessert!
Then, I settled back into my pjs.
Throw a good sprinkling of feedings & changings in there, & you have the picture of a very full, very productive feeling day for a new mommy.
Today I am worn out.
Here is the recipe for the delicious Sit & Stay Awhile Apple Crisp (via Joy the Baker):
For the filling:
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, & cut into quarter inch slices (about 7.5 cups)
3 T. sugar
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
For the topping:
1 1/3 c. flour
1 1/3 c. lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, well-softened
2/3 c. finely chopped pecans (I normally am not a fan of nuts in desserts, but they are divine in this one)
1/3 c. quick oats (I used old fashioned & those are fine too)
Preheat the oven to 350°. Generously grease an 8×8 baking dish with butter. Or double the recipe (oh, you will want to) & grease a 9×13 dish.
Place a single layer of apple slices in the pan & sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon mixture. Repeat a couple more times until all apples are in the pan, then toss until evenly coated in sugar & cinnamon.
To make the topping, combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, pecans, & oats in a large bowl. Work the melted butter into the mixture with your fingertips until it’s evenly dispersed & you have small lumps. Toss one handful in with the sugared apples, then sprinkle the rest of the topping evenly over the dish.
Place the baking dish on a cookie sheet & bake on the center rack in the oven for 55-60 minutes. The juices & apples should be bubbling & the topping crisp & lovely golden. Serve hot to someone you love.
- ~ – ~ – ~ – ~ – ~ – ~ – ~ – ~ -
Today is my blogiversary!! This tiny tiny nook of the interwebs has been home to my crafty/foody/undirected thoughts for a year & I am looking forward to carving out this space even more. Thank you for reading my musings thus far…more to come!
♥
1 Comment »
September 22nd, 2008
Welcome, Fall!
Our dry, brittle leaves don’t get the lovely tinted changes at the onset of Fall, & our climate holds a steady temperature of 101°, dipping slightly into the high nineties throughout the first few weeks of the seasonal change.
Nevertheless, Fall is here. And this house is ready.
I pieced this wreath together a couple weeks ago while watching a holiday movie (could not help it). It’s been stashed in the Craft Room since, waiting for Fall to come knocking. Yesterday Anthony crawled into the attic to sift through Christmas boxes & returned with the wreath hanger. Only two more months before all the contents of those boxes can be unleashed!
Butternut Squash & Vanilla Risotto was had this evening to ring in Fall.
Warm cranberry apple cider with cinnamon & cloves awaited us after dinner. The house smelled divine.
These are to be whipped up within the week. I’ve gone through my recipes & pulled out all the Fall-ish soups & desserts…now I will need to be patient enough for Mother Nature to share Fall temperatures with us.
On the eve of Autumn, we went out for our evening walk only to encounter a trio of nomad kittens a few houses down. One ran up to us, eager for love (read:food) & promptly fell into step with us as we paved our way back home. The others, a slinky black thing & a tiger striped tabby, lingered slowly behind, adamant in keeping the crew together. I am fairly certain they are little wandering strays, but more certain that they do have a purpose & they know what it is.
I spent time with them at our door last night, watching them romp through our barren lawn, chasing crickets & leaping over the piles of dried weeds (at least someone appreciates our yard). Eventually the second kitten warmed up to me & began spiraling between my ankles. I named her Serafina. Anthony deemed the shy one Harold (I am sure he is the boy of the group; he is quite timid). The most forward kitten, the leader of the pack, still goes unnamed. During one of my several wake-ups thoughout the night I think I decided she could be Nattie, but I’m not entirely taken with the moniker.
Cats are magical to me, symbolic I suppose. Over 10 years ago, on the day we had to put our white kitten down, I was sitting on the stoop outside my parents’ house & spotted a shaggy tabby curled up under a car across the street. It was my first encounter with a stray cat, but I called to it & surprisingly he ran over & unabashedly began nuzzling me. I was instantly soothed in a way that all the words of comfort fed to me that day seemed to lack. We named him Sebastian & he became our “outside cat.” He was my angel cat, I am confident. There was something magical about him, about our meeting. Later on, he & “his wife” Susie stashed their litter of squeaking kittens under our side window & we took them in to nourish & find homes. We kept two for ourselves, our little mini-angels…
Last night’s encounter with the nomads felt very reminiscent of Sebastian’s homecoming. There was no event to mourn or comforting needed, but rather I think their presence symbolizes change. The onset of Fall, the imminent arrival of our own little angel any day now.
I don’t think I’ve ever anticipated the turn of seasons so much.
When Ella is old enough to know about the seasons & begins to wonder what makes Fall so different & special, I will tell her it is a time of magic. The weight of the air lifts, the leaves begin to turn, & change can be felt when you step outside your decorated door. She will grow up knowing the dawn of Fall by the cinnamon scent in her home. And she will know that of all the seasons in my life, she brought me the most pleasant change of any.
Happy Fall to you & yours.
1 Comment »
March 20th, 2008
It’s the first day of Spring!! As I pulled into the parking lot at work this morning I noticed a tree that I’d been neglecting for so long throughout winter. I hadn’t realized I’d been ignoring it, it must have been a subconscious avoidance since its branches had turned to empty twigs. But this morning it is alive. Bright, flashy green leaves stretching out & up to the sun…so nice. It inspired me, made me want to turn around & go home to my dollies even more. I told myself it was finally time, in honor of Spring if nothing else, to sit down & catch up with this space. I can’t believe I haven’t updated since our First Fridays venture. I can believe it, actually, & that is sad. I really want to be better about this. Anyway, I’d written a bit about the experience back when the feelings were fresh, although the excitement of the evening is still with me:
We headed out to downtown Phoenix Friday afternoon for our first official first-hand selling experience. We’ve had our shop for some time now, but this is completely different. It was amazing. So much fun! We set up on 3rd Street, just south of Roosevelt. When we pulled up to the area at 4:30 the streets were already lined with vendors & the spot I’d hoped for was still vacant, so we promptly threw our table down & set up shoppe.
It was so nice to receive direct, immediate feedback on our tees. Now I can’t believe we haven’t given ourselves more of those experiences. We’ll be setting up again in April, but sadly that will probably be it as the galleries along the Art Walk are upset by all the vendors & traffic they’ve brought to the scene. Starting in May, officials will start handing out citations & fines, so I think we’ll be far away by that point.
So April, we are looking forward to your arrival. New tees are in the works & we’re planning on introducing a few items from our baby line as well. Those pieces really tickle my fancy. I love tiny onesies! So we’re in for some very busy evenings over the next two weeks.
In other news, I am working my fingers to nubs trying to crank out new dollies. This is the first time I’ve found a pattern that I want to stick with for a while. I’ve realized I like pattern-making almost as much, if not equally, to actually constructing the dolls. I love to see how I can change the pieces to make something new. This time, though, I must’ve hit on a keeper because I haven’t strayed for weeks. I have plans for a male counterpart, but all I want to do is make the little girls. Here’s a peek.
I am really going to try to be better about logging my thoughts & crafty progress. I’ve been a bit preoccupied lately with another little project Anthony & I have been brewing up, but things should be getting back to semi-normal soon. More on that later. 
Enjoy your first day of Spring…be sure you go out & bask in the warmth for at least just a minute or two today.
Share a comment.
January 6th, 2008
Ha, so much for getting the hang of the blogging thing. I can’t believe I haven’t done this for an entire month. The holidays were extremely busy but more-so lovely. Anthony’s grandma came in toward the end of the month. I’d been looking forward to her visit since we found out her plans-she is Italian & cute & I love her. A few days after her arrival, my husband’s uncle & family flew in & so our week was spent eating, seeing Juno again, eating, cooing at our newest tiny family member, & eating. When his family flew out, my big sister stooped in. I loved having her here for Christmas again! & this time she & her beau had their own room in our house! ‘Twas very exciting…except for the flu that went around the house for a couple of days. That was an odd bit. That week saw us battling one another in Dr. Mario (remember Dr. Mario for Nintendo? It is old & likely not impressive to the newer bunch so accustomed to flashy visuals, but such a classic & the only video game I was ever worth anything at), playing cards, & rocking at Guitar Hero. After the big day, Anthony & I headed up north to his mom’s cabin for some more family time & snow. Hhhhh. So our holidays were quite hectic but in the most wonderful way…family hecticity. I miss Christmas already. We had gone to our friend’s Christmas show at her church & I came away with the urging to ‘keep’ Christmas this year, rather than ‘spend’ it. I tried to take this idea to heart this year, & I think I came away successful. I can only hope that next year will bring as many visits & laughs from loved ones as this one did.
So now here we are, 2008 & I’ve begun it with a nasty cold. & the little grey kitty has a urinary tract infection. We’ll be making a visit to the vet this week it seems.
This weekend was spent nursing my sinuses & playing Guitar Hero 3. Anthony has become quite impressive; I not so much. But I do love to carry the persona. & the fans are swell to me.
My poster, should I ever succeed in the music business:
-I think it needs some work-
We just returned from seeing Atonement & it was so soo good. I think I have to read the book now. Must be done.
Oh & this is fabulous…I would like a pair of those snazzy flashing socks from Nelly. Rats, she’s already got a waiting list. Jolly good night.
Share a comment.
recent posts
archives
subscribe
