Grammy time

With Aaron away for a few days in Reno for a meeting we are enjoying having grammy around for a few days.  Considering I am now a ripe 37 weeks pregnant and could technically go anytime now we thought it might be good to have grammy around just incase....plus it is so much fun to have her around!  Isabelle has been being super boss lately and taking full advantage of having gram around...

grammy and isabelle on the bike path - they ran practically the whole time!

Thanks Grammy!!

b-way

As mentioned we had a little Rhody reunion Friday evening and it was, as expected, filled with catching up, inappropriate banter, laughs, and lots of eating.  Kelly decided to throw me a sort of blessing way/mother's blessing - which I guess was agreed on by all the men with the stipulation of calling it anything but a blessing way (hence...b-way).  It may not have been the most traditional blessing way but it was so much fun and I laughed so hard I cried myself silly...and nearly wet myself.

cheese & meat spread...

me laughing so hard I was afraid it might onset labor

kelly gave me a foot bath with some deliciously smelling homemade sugar rub 

and aaron later massaged my feet...

"happy labor caitlyn" cake from Pastiche....

My b-way consisted of a foot bath, then some herbs added by everyone, a foot rub, a lovely green crown, some yarn tied around us all to connect us, some fortune cookies (read the fortune and then end it with..."in labor"...example: "New and rewarding opportunities will soon develop for you...in labor"), some lovely poetry, and of course a delicious coconut cake from Pastiche.  And even though we all laughed and giggled over it all-- it was really special and very thoughtful of my dear friend Kelly to do for me - so thanks Kel, from the bottom of my heart!  And thanks to my amazing husband, Jeff & Carolyn and Dave for taking part in this special ritual.

pajammy buddies, Isabelle & Noa

love...

In addition everyone took home a candle, with the intention that once labor begins we will have a sort of phone/text/email tree to let everyone know that labor has started and that the baby is on his or her way...  and I would like to extend this to everyone (if you want to partake) - I will be sending out an email at some point with a reminder to set aside a candle and have it ready around December 5th.... and that when we actually start we will let you know - you can light your candle as a way to "connect" with us and as a reminder to send us some positive thoughts.  

oh and the verdict from the ultrasound was that the head is indeed down and baby is in position!

walking and talking

Lately Isabelle and I have been taking lots of walks and talking quite a bit about the baby and what life will be like with a baby in the house.  She has so many questions, like...where the baby will sleep, what toys will the baby play with, will the baby cry a lot...and so on.  Most questions I can answer but some are a bit tough to know until we meet the baby and that in itself is a hard concept for Isabelle to grasp.

on our morning walk today (and yes she has been swallowed by the purple monster)

silliness

In a little while Isabelle and I will head down to Concord for a quick visit with our midwives...they are 90% sure the baby is head down (there is a little confusion because of the placement of my placenta) but want to be 100% sure so we are going to do a quick ultrasound to make sure baby is where it is supposed to be.  Both Isabelle and I are excited to get a quick glimpse of the baby one last time before we get to meet him or her!

Congregate by Nikki McClure

And later today we will be having a little Rhody reunion with some friends - we are really looking forward to seeing them, getting involved in inappropriate banter, and of course eating...  We wish the whole gang could come up but understand Kris & Sarah have more important things like work and what not in their life....(booo).....:).

Hopefully I will remember to take out my camera tonight to capture some silliness....

all isabelle, all day

So as mentioned...yesterday was sort of "my day" - Isabelle let me get away with a lot of crafting during the day.  And well...it sort of caught up.  This morning we already had one end of the world blow out...  I was merely trying to quickly combine ingredients for boston baked beans and put together dough for a no-knead bread....and well hell broke loose.  There was raised voices yelling, stomping, spilt milk (literally), door slamming, and tears...from both of us.  Some days are not meant to be filled with over ambitious ideas of what I think I need to accomplish...

the boston baked beans...

So today, we will be playing all day...and with 65 degrees and sun in the forecast I simply can't wait to go outside... and do what ever she wants... which so far has been:

dancing to our pandora station: kids folk music

declaring we NEED a magic wand...and promptly getting out supplies

and smiling...

which is so much better than 2 hours ago

And now Isabelle decided, on her own, that she needed a warm bath to relax before we go outside (I wish I could fit in our mini tub with her...it sounds wonderful indeed).  Hence why I was able to throw up a quick post to share in our not so perfect but wonderful morning.   

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!