corners of crafty

Today was a crafty sort of day.  Slowly finishing projects and breaking out some that have been abandoned for over a year.  Isabelle is pretty patient with me on days like this and in return I end up stopping every ten minutes to meet her needs - help her dress and undress dolly, read her books, and even join her for a quick dance around the living room.  She also helps by pressing the foot on the sewing machine and "organizing" my yarn.

reversible pants for a special lady

(quick change trousers from handmade beginnings by anna maria horner)

more baby bonnets

a christmas stocking i started in 2009 for isabelle

yes it is definitely time to just finish it...

I have to admit that I must have had a premonition that I would have lots of time and little money to splurge on crafting supplies because I have been so preoccupied with my stash it has been wonderful....while I do crave a trip to the yarn shop, the fabric store, or an online splurge on craft items I know I have lots to work through first.  I remember thinking it was ridiculous to buy loads of cashmere/silk baby yarn with no project (it was just such a good deal!) and that time I thought I would sew up dresses and aprons....well now that yarn is being knit into lots of baby hats and booties and that fabric is being used for bibs, blankets, and pants.  And yes I suppose you have a right to think I am totally baby crazy....but baby projects are so quick and simple... they are just so hard to resist.

weekend happenings: in the kitchen

This was one of those weekends I wish I could hit the repeat button on... we cooked, we bottled, we baked, we walked, we talked, we took naps (oh wait that was just me...)  and watched too many episodes of Mad Men.  And it isn't until now that I really think about the days of us three are limited and quite priceless - in the coming months I don't expect us to make homemade pasta, brownies, or slow cooked ragu bolognese...(well I suppose I hope the brownies will rear their delicious head...they are amazing).  I recall quite a lull in our love of cooking and baking following the birth of Isabelle.  Between the summer heat, Aaron working his butt off finishing his Phd, and my lack of sleep we weren't all that interesting in the kitchen.  Hopefully with Isabelle's interest in the kitchen it will keep us motivated and inspired to do more - there is just nothing better (and sometimes nothing more stressful) than working with little hands in the kitchen.  She is so eager to be in the middle and be apart of every step.  And I know I've mentioned it before but she will eat anything that she makes.

learning how to bottle and cap beer

(Carter would be so proud of our little brewmaster)

kneading the pasta dough

rolling out the dough

admiring our work

cutting our pasta into fettucini

devouring...

I'm sure most of you out there reading this has experienced homemade pasta but if you haven't you truly must.  Nothing can compare.  

Note: the spinach pasta & ragu recipes are from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano and my favorite brownie recipe is Alton Browns, which can be found here....just beware they are probably a heart attack waiting to happen and you can't just eat one...:)

rainbows

looking down at my belly usually makes me smile...but bellies with unexpected rainbows deserve a picture

Hope you are having a fantastic weekend!

bouncing around the room

Today we discovered that a local rec center offers play time for toddlers with mats, balls, and ....a BLOW UP CASTLE.  And well, as sensory overloaded as it sounds and is...it was a great excuse to get out of the house and jump.  Isabelle was her normal observing self for about a half an hour until she decided that, yes, bouncing in a huge blow up castle might just be fun...and so when for a split second that blow up castle was empty of rosy cheeked stir crazy kids she made her move...

prancing, dancing and jumping

flopping, flailing and lots of giggles

And after a few times of scurrying out of the bounce house every time there was an intruder she decided that it was ok to bounce around with some other kids....as long as it was just one or two.

And now I appropriately can't get Phish's Bouncing Around the Room song out of my head...

"Then before and now once more I’m bouncing round the room
That time and once again I'm bouncing around the room"

Less is more?

I'm all about less is more as a general rule of thumb (for anything)...  However, I have been really tired lately and having a hard time feeling like I am actually accomplishing anything.  But then I look around a little closer and I accept that I am getting some things done....just not at my usual pace.

a baby bonnet started last night and finished this morning

taking the time to admire a handmade gift and other goodies sent from Idaho

~thank you Rebekka!

making banana bread with my little helper

playing midwife with isabelle

even though my little midwife has extra cold hands

I've also managed two loads of laundry, washed dishes, ignored unmade beds and posted a blog update - no pictures needed for that... so when I look a little closer I suppose I can be ok with doing less.... for now.

Happy Halloween!

For Halloween we dressed in our finest purple kitty attire and headed to down town Lebanon for a little Halloween fest put on by the town.  It was just right for Isabelle - some storytelling, apples & cheese, a horse drawn wagon ride, and even a few sweet treats!

listening to some "scary" stories

coloring a pumpkin with markers, check out those teeth!

waiting for the wagon ride

a cute purple kitten

yay, we finally got on!

and off we go!

loosing our ears...

a happy kitty and daddy

I would say it was a Halloween success!  I am officially 35 weeks pregnant today and feeling great.  I am (I think) experiencing braxton hicks contractions lately, something I don't remember with Isabelle....so that is new... and baby had hiccups for the first time a few days ago.  And well I can go about 15 minutes before I need a bathroom in a bad way.... we are so close now and I am definitely having baby fever!  I can't wait for this little baby to come out!

but for now I am just relishing in the peculiar and erratic movements in my belly that look like an alien might pop out at any moment... 

a white weekend

A weekend in good company - grammy and grampy came up for some good old fashion weekend fun.  Saturday we went to the Harpoon brewery for some lunch and while the boys went on a tour my mom, Isabelle, and I headed over to visit the cows at Billing's Farm.  Isabelle braved the milking and actually watched this time (very brave).  Aaron and my dad also somehow made it over to Long Trail for some beer tasting as well- how convenient to take a long way home!  And as predicted the first Nor' Eastah came through and dumped a pile of snow on us Saturday night - I would say a good 5 or 6 inches in our neck of the woods.  And it was perfect weather for a big breakfast followed by romping in the snow and building a snow family building.

playing a little cowboy and horses

johnny cakes

blueberry pancakes

beginning the layering for snow play

layering complete

sledding

making snowmen

our snow family

(you likely can't see but my snow woman has a baby bump too)

Isabelle posing with the snow family

And while I was truly tempted to put on some classy holiday music (I know I know way too early for holiday music).... instead we finished up isabelle's halloween costume for tomorrow.  She wanted to be a purple kitten with pink ears....so all I had to do was make a tail and ears...she has plenty of purple clothing... and voila....a purple kitten with pink ears!

purple kitten complete....