Craftiness

I've been on an embroidery bender lately- it's dangerously addicting. After months of looking for patterns that didn't involve geese in bonnets, or kittens playing in the milk jug, I've found this site. My goodness, I LOVE it! Simple outlines, funky pictures (librarians, pirates, SUSHI?) and not a saccharine kitty in sight. You can purchase transfer sheets for $3.50 from her website- each 8x11 inch page is crammed with as many drawings as she could fit. The creator, Jenny Hart, also has a book, Sublime Stitching, that came out last year. Lots of tips, stitch instructions, and iron-on transfer pages. Maybe everyone does this, but she uses a transferable ink that can be transferred up to 8 times! Cool...and I wonder if you could still trace them after that? Wonder Daddy suggested making a photo copy before you start transferring. See, that's why he's the one with the Masters Degree! I have the book on order from the library- can't wait to get my paws on it and see what she has to say.

So, on that note, here is what I stitched up for my brother-in-law this afternoon. We're throwing a birthday part for him tonight while they're still in town. He is a tennis MASTER. Also, although he weighs MAYBE 60 pounds sopping wet (I kid...kind of) he LOVES food. His vacations are planned around restaurant outings. He was raised that way (and his mother weighs 90 pounds. No, I'm not kidding.) With apologies to Ms. Hart, I just couldn't wait to trace her sushi pattern so I free-handed my own. These are stitched on plain white handkerchiefs Ernie and I picked up Monday morning. For anyone who wants to know, I used 2 strands of floss and a back stitch, except for the straight stitching on the sushi.

38 weeks

Babies...say hello to your cousin!

Me at 38 weeks, and Aunt LoLo at roughly 24 weeks. Doesn't she look cute?

We spent the last week visiting my family at a lake house they rented out- it's our second year doing this, and so much fun! Even more fun this year, because we got all the siblings there (last year, no one had to travel.) It's an amazing thing to get 2 grandparents, 2 preggo ladies, 2 toddlers who generally engage in nuclear warfare when they're in the same room, 2 sons-in-law, 1 "my foot is almost on the airplane, leaving for the MTC" brother, 1 "I live in a bachelor pad with 3 guys, and work downtown on things you couldn't even begin to comprehend" brother, and one teenage girl...all in the same house! Oh, and downtown brother only stayed for the first weekend but he brought ALL his roommates, plus one other. My goodness gracious, can those boys EAT!! I've never seen anything like it- for once, I didn't make too much food for a group.

36 Weeks

Pop quiz: These pictures were taken during 2 different pregnancies. One is 36 weeks, one is 39. Guess which one produced an 8 pound 9 ounce, 22 inch, nurse all day and all night kind of Wunderkind? And which one is expected to produce a child in the 7 pound range? Good Night, I was large!




For anyone wanting to follow along, the doctor says that the baby is descending... and I'm allowed to deliver anytime after next week! We'll be leaving here Friday afternoon to visit my family at a lake house they've rented out for a few weeks. Ernie and I will stay for a week, Wonder Daddy will come on the weekends. And my dad has a zippy little Prius in case I need to get home.

Oh, and Nana? This doctor schedules inducement dates at the "one week overdue" appointment. So that's the week of the 15th, at the latest! Wahoo!

Oh yeah, I'm the one on the left. Not the "I'm too skinny for my pants, I just fell in love" Aunt LoLo. Her wonderful Lo Gung proposed the day Ernie was born. Just a few hours later, in fact. He'd been waiting, to make sure she wouldn't be called away mid-proposal!

The Best Part of Waking Up is NOT Folgers in Your Cup

Ever find your self sitting around on a Sunday afternoon, waiting for a toddler to wake up so you can go to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner? With a plate of fresh cookies? And you wonder out loud "What would happen if I....?" And your husband grabs the camera?

And THAT, my friends, is why I'm "I Wonder Woman." I ask waaaay too many questions.

Enjoy!

Bubba Bubbles: E's Birthday

Bubba Bubbles: E's Birthday

Aunt LoLo has repeatedly requested that this video be re-introduced to the world. She and her husband get a strong case of the giggles every time they hear my English-challenged daughter say "Happy Birthday!"

So, click on over to Aunt LoLo's blog and enjoy Ernie's unbridled enthusiasm for all things birthday party!

Mr. Bobblehead is hungry

Wonder Daddy attended a baseball game last night with about 40 of his office-mates. What a fun thing to do for the employees! Since he doesn't drink beer, the $25 gift card was WAY more than he needed for dinner so he picked up a few things for Ernie.

The bobblehead doll has become a "Magic 8 Ball" of sorts. At first, Wonder Daddy would ask it a question ("Does Ernie want to help set the table?") and Mr. Bobblehead Doll would nod a confident YES. But then his powers were turned to darkness. Does Ernie get juice with her breakfast? Yes! Will Daddy take Ernie to the park today? Yes!

This could be a problem. But at least he's just as excited for pancakes as Ernie was.

Notice that the placemats are out, her place is set, and she is all ready. This is what she did while waiting for Mom and Dad to get out of bed this morning.

A new favorite toy, and some pictures

My grandpa (Ernie likes to call him Bobby Boy, which I don't think he knows yet) loves to clean out cupboards. He sends home canned goods, old books, frozen food...anything that he hasn't used in a few months, that can fit in a grocery sack, he'll pile in your trunk or next to your car if it's locked. Today's loot included an airplane magazine for Wonder Daddy, a container of Grandpa's famous white bean soup, and a "Sort n Save" bank that has been around for as long as I can remember, PLUS he sent home a few cups of coins. Ernie loves sorting, Ernie loves little things, and Ernie loves this money bank! I think she spent a solid hour sorting coins this afternoon.

Notice the trademarked "Ernie Smirk." She gets that from her dad- smiling, but trying hard not to.


The intense concentration. This is the 12-month-old who spent 45 minutes at a time stacking and unstacking yogurt cups.
48-piece puzzles are no match for the attention span of this little girl. She'll work on them for an hour if she has to, and yell "done it!" at the end. And ask for another one.

Good grief, could her eyes be any bigger or bluer?


I tell you what, those eyes sure got noticed a lot in the face of a 4-week-old!


That's my girl!

Week in Review, and a Pop Quiz. And an extra sorbet recipe!

It's been a nice, slow week. Besides one piano lesson, Monday through Wednesday were uninterrupted Mommy-Daughter days. Very nice!

Picture is Ernie, wondering WHY I am interrupting her fresh-out-of-the-oven bread eating with my silly camera. Again.

Thursday was our weekly foray to Grandma and Grandpa's house of course, but what I didn't mention is a destination we've added along the way. For as long as I can remember, there has been a fruit stand down the street from their home. Every morning, the workers will cull through the fruit and make up $2 boxes of fruit that is bruised and needs to be sold ASAP before bad things start happening. Last week I picked up about 20 cucumbers, which were eaten as snacks and made into raita for Sunday's family meal. This week it was probably 15 super-ripe mangos. Unlike last week, there was no mold in this batch. The worse thing I found was fruit that acted more like jelly "water-balloons" than the firm fruit we normally find in our grocery stores. Everything firm was sliced and frozen for future smoothies, and the rest was blended into puree and frozen. We saved out about 1 1/2 cups for a sorbet recipe. I think you could safely substitute other fruit purees. Taste this before you finish adding the simple syrup, and add to taste. I boiled together 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water, until all the sugar was dissolved. It can be stored in the fridge for other uses for a few weeks. (Great for lemonade, brushing on cakes before you frost, etc.)

Mango Sorbet
1 1/2 cups mango puree
1/2 cup simple syrup
3 Tablespoons lime juice

Blend everything together, and stick the mixing bowl in your freezer. Whisk smooth every hour for 3 hours- will be soft-serve consistency. Store in a smaller container, with surface covered in saran wrap. --OR-- Freeze in an ice cream freezer.

Friday afternoon my dad called with 4 tickets to the baseball game, 3rd base line ON TOP of the dugout. Did we want them? Oh boy! We ended up taking my brother and his friend- they both work in the city, and walked over to the stadium after work. Aren't they cute?

The game was a lot of fun, even though (as usual) we lost. Wonder Daddy and I brought in a Costco pizza for everyone, and we had a ball! Although, I can say with some authority that number 51 on the opposing team was a heckler. And had a foul mouth. And hit one of the coaches in the head with a grounder from first base that hit the dugout fence and bounced up during between-inning practice time. Oops.

Uggh- here's Wonder Daddy and I. Uncle R's friend took the picture and pronounced us "adorable." Umm...if this is adorable, what do I NORMALLY look like? Never mind- I'm due in 5 weeks, and plan on nursing off every.last.stinking.pound. (If we make it to 22 months again, I think I have a chance!)


Finally, here is the Pop Quiz for this week. Watch the video...and write in to tell us all what she's saying! First person to get a blow-by-blow correct gets...? How about bragging rights, and next week's batch of rainbow chard from the garden? Or something else if you don't live close by. Oh, and please ignore the wardrobe malfunction. It happens.