Our Quiet Place

Little Moments

2012-01-25T18:02:00.002-06:00

Hmmm...

2012-01-09T14:46:00.001-06:00

So life has not allowed much time for blogging...
Maybe in the new year?

June Garden

2011-06-20T14:29:00.008-05:00

Thanks to some nice hot days and plenty of rain, our garden is filling in nicely. I decided to plant fewer flowers this year and filled in every last corner with heirloom edibles. We have four different varieties of tomatoes this year, a dozen plants in all, which required the addition of another trellis. We also have four kinds of carrots in red, orange, yellow, and purple, one squash plant that is beginning to resemble something from the jungle, two varieties of bush beans and lettuce, eight basil plants in addition our perennial herbs, some miniature short-season melons, and a wayward Mammoth sunflower that sprouted from one of last year's fallen seeds.The Bright Lights Swiss Chard is living up to its name, looking beautiful, and growing like crazy. Between the chard and our CSA, we are up to our ears in greens right now and will be trying some new recipes from this book. Tonight: Swiss Chard Gratin. Tomorrow: Homemade Braised Chard Pizza.And the lavender is budding. There are few things better than plunging your face into the plant and inhaling deeply. Garden aromatherapy.Thankfully, our not-so-pretty-to-look-at, but pretty-effective fence has been keeping the little critters out of our garden. All except for one that is...
Boy, oh boy, does this baby love dirt! He loves to dig it, squish it, occasionally taste it, and generally get it all over himself and everyone else, all while repeating over and over with much gusto, "Ucko!" Noah, on the other hand, has discovered how to turn on the hose and tries to help wash the dirt off everything and everyone.
Good (and muddy and wet) times in the garden!

In The Summertime

2011-06-13T17:13:00.013-05:00

The first days of June brought with it some HOT days (90+ degrees in the shade!) giving the garden a boost and sending us running for our swimming suits and sunscreen. Within the span of a few days, we had filled more days with street parties, wading pools and Popsicles than I could remember having throughout the past two summers combined. Of course, last summer is a blurry, sleep-deprived memory due to the fact that Isaac was barely out of newborn stage, and our outside time was greatly limited to the shade. The summer before that I was pregnant, feeling queasy, and you could not have paid me a thousand bucks to put on a swimming suit. So, armed with a new kiddie pool, complete with a mini slide, and some SPF 60, we are ready to wring every last bit of fun out of this summer.I had been so looking forward to warmer weather and not having to dress two squirming boys in hats, mittens, boots, etc., etc. to go play outside that I quite forgot it takes nearly as long to put sunscreen on two squirming boys. I had also forgotten that sunscreen is messy stuff, as they smear their little SPFed bodies up against windows, appliances, and unfortunately, all over the piano. After finding that the black finish came off with the cleaning cloth when I tried to clean the sunscreen off the bench day after day, I decided that we were in desperate need of a piano bench cover. When an Internet search turned up few options available for purchase, Curtis said, "Why don't you just sew one?" I thought about for a minute before continuing my search even more furiously, because I really didn't feel that I had the time or energy to come up with a pattern. Alas, I could find nothing suitable for our extra long bench. So began a several day project, with me measuring and re-measuring, crawling around on the floor cutting fabric scraps of fabric, and sewing them together while perched on a toddler-sized chair in front of the sewing machine I had placed on an end table in my make-shift sewing area in the foyer. The best (and maybe the only good) feature of the area being that it was located on the other side of the baby gate and out of reach of the kiddos, so they could safely play on the other side while I worked on my project.Several days later, we have a brand new quilted piano bench cover...

I was so happy when I slid the finished cover over the bench and it actually fit that I may have done a little dance. OK...I did do a little dance, and the boys laughed at me. This project just might have given me the confidence to actually finish the quilt that I started over a year ago (the scraps of which were used for this cover). Though I may need to set up a better sewing area in a corner of the basement. That toddler sized chair just isn't cutting it :)

Lots O' Hats

2011-05-02T11:03:00.003-05:00

It has been brought to my attention that when you post several photos of newborn hats on Ravelry, people assume that you are expecting a new baby. So I thought I had better announce that we are not expecting. I am, however, knitting a bunch of newborn hats and other items for a local newborn photographer (check out her amazing work here).

As a knitter, I really can't imagine anything better than getting to pick out a variety of gorgeous yarns (that I don't have to pay for!) and trying out a bunch of new patterns, while at the same time satisfying my need to knit teeny tiny baby things. I can't wait to see some of these hats on the beautiful newborns she photographs!

~Jen

Introducing Bunny

2011-04-27T11:03:00.009-05:00

I mentioned in my last post that I was pretty sure there was a rabbit living under our back steps. Well, the rabbit had babies apparently (pretty early in the season for that isn't it?), and at least one of them is still hanging around. We have seen him (or her) several times over the past couple days sitting nestled next our back step under the protection of our pergola, and venturing out from time to time to nibble on some grass. I caught a picture of him through the glass doors yesterday. I must say, he is adorable with a little patch of white fur in the middle of its face.

I am torn between loving the fact that he is out there where the boys can watch him (though I am sure he will get more shy as he gets a bit older) and knowing that the same cute, little, fuzzy bunny will wreak havoc on the garden later on. Of course, we could just get the rabbit fence back up and live in perfect bunny harmony. Until then, we will enjoy watching him and feeding him little bits of pear and carrot. Maybe that will keep him from eating my lilies.

Spring Ramble

2011-04-25T10:21:00.011-05:00

Time to break the blogging hiatus. I have plenty of excuses for not blogging lately, none of which are very interesting or exciting, so I will spare the details and just move on...

We are enjoying warmer days here and there, though Mother Nature has a nasty way of playing tricks on us and giving us nice warm days one week followed by snow and sleet the next. Isaac is mastering the new challenge of walking in the grass and dirt, and particularly enjoys eating the bits of bread that we have thrown outside for the birds and rabbits when I am not looking. Meanwhile, Noah is back to his favorite outside activity of mowing and raking. And while we don't have a sandbox, the boys seem content to dig in a corner of mulch for hours on end, filling and dumping the same bucket over and over again. Isaac only sampled the dirt once or twice.

The garden is in need of some fresh compost and soil (our compost bin doesn't produce enough for the whole garden) before it is ready for planting, so I am a bit behind in my spring planting. However, we do have a few seedlings growing nicely in the basement. I am keeping it simple and starting only basil, Swiss Chard, and a few varieties of heirloom tomatoes inside. The rest of the garden will be directly sown as soon as the weather is more consistent and we get our rabbit-proof fence back up, lest I make the same mistake as last year and feed all those nurtured seedlings to the rabbits.

Speaking of rabbits...I am pretty sure one of them lives under our back steps. Though we rarely see it, he or she leaves behind plenty of um...evidence. However, last night as we were eating our Easter dinner, I happened to glance out the big sliding glass door in our dining room and there it was, just a few feet away, nibbling on the bits of bread (the ones Isaac hadn't eaten) and joining us for Easter dinner. How many people can say the Easter Bunny joined them for dinner? :)

That brings this Spring ramble to a close. I promise to be back soon with an update on some new projects and the boys' latest antics...

~Jen

Afghan in Progress

2011-03-10T05:18:00.003-06:00

Quite possibly my favorite thing in our little living room is this painting, called Spring Leaves by Teri Jonas. I love the colors and the feeling of calm that it evokes every time I look at it. We got it shortly after I read the book, Tuck Everlasting, and it reminds me of the forest clearing described in the book.In fact, I love the colors so much that I was inspired to crochet a cozy wool afghan for our living room picking up on the colors in the painting. The afghan is a simple granny square pattern that I simply kept making bigger and bigger (instead of making a bunch of little squares and later sewing them together). I have a very bad habit of starting these large projects and then not finishing them, but the changing colors help keep my interest while the mindlessness of the pattern allows me to work on it little chunks of time and when there are other lots distractions. I was on quite a roll too, almost two-thirds finished and rather proud of myself, before I realized that I underestimated how much yarn I would need. So this project is currently on hold because the yarn I need is now on back order. Actually, a benefit of this pattern is that we can use it right now, it is just a little on the small side. (Isaac, as you can see, had his own ideas about how the afghan should be displayed for pictures.)
With the afghan project on hold, I have been working on a few quick little projects, including a vest for Isaac using a robin's egg blue color that I had gotten for the afghan and then decided didn't quite work with the color scheme. This was my first time using this particular pattern by Georgie Hallam (details on ravelry). Like her other patterns, it is well written with lots of room for personalization. I added a little orange elephant color work just for fun, but I like how it ended up matching Isaac's amber teething necklace so well.

So there, now that I have shared the afghan project with all of blogland, I will be less likely to set it aside and never finish it. Right?

First Steps

2011-03-07T15:51:00.011-06:00

As promised, here is a video of Isaac's first steps. I just love his persistence and the look of concentration on his face. It makes me smile every time I watch it, which has got to be close to a hundred times by now! (So as not to get our blog music playing over the top of the video, you may want to go way to the bottom of the blog and pause the music player.)

Toddling

2011-03-04T15:45:00.003-06:00

In honor of the fact Isaac is officially toddling, I thought he deserved some new mama-made pants. Some time ago, I came across the free pattern for these adorable and appropriately named 'On The Go-veralls' and immediately added it to my knitting queue. I waited to start them until after he began walking, figuring he would be less likely to wear through the knees at that point. Knitting details and modifications are on ravelry.

The legs came out a little long, but are easily cuffed, allowing some growing room. I really think I might need to make another pair of these cute, cute pants!

And I promise, as soon as we figure out how to transfer video to our new computer, I will post an equally cute and adorable clip of Isaac taking his very first steps :)

One

2011-02-18T07:50:00.003-06:00

Our baby turned a year old this week! In the days leading up to Isaac's birthday, I found myself remembering back a year ago, thinking, "Last year at this time..." Memories of having a gigantic belly, but having no idea that inside was a 10 lb 5 oz baby boy. Memories of being so, so sick the week before his birth and hoping that he would postpone his arrival until I could at least breathe through my nose. Memories of finally feeling better, nearly a week after my due date and my water breaking at 1:00 am on February 12, 2010. Memories of surrendering to the fast and intense labor that seemed to take control of my body. Memories of the minutes leading up to his birth, Curtis leaning over the bathtub and supporting me as I pushed while holding a phone in his other hand, giving the en route midwives play by play over the phone; "The head is out! It looks like Noah!" Reaching down and cradling the top of his head in my hand for the first time, his soft hair floating gently in the warm water. And finally, at 2:17 am, pushing harder than I had ever pushed before, then reaching down, scooping his slippery, wet body up out of the water, bringing him to my chest, and seeing that Noah had a brother! Being the only ones present for his birth was a gift that we shall never forget, though we were very happy when our midwife and her assistant arrived minutes later!

Now, a year later, he brings such smiles and laughter to our lives. Which is very appropriate, since his name means 'He will laugh.'
He still likes to spend a good portion of his days perched on my lap, thus the reason most photos of him are close-ups these days. But he is also gaining independence. Learning to walk. Learning to let go. It is so bittersweet.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Baby!

Magical Moments

2011-02-10T11:33:00.013-06:00

Lately, it feels as if I spend my entire day mediating the relationship between the boys. Every other sentence out of my mouth is something along the lines of, "We don't push," or "We don't take things each other," or simply, "Share, please!" The boys are in general very loving and sweet towards each other. They just both abide by the Toddler's Rules of Possession:
1. If I like it, it's mine.
2. If it's in my hand, it's mine.
3. If I can take it from you, it's mine.
4. If I had it a little while ago, it's mine.
5. If it's mine, it must never appear to be yours in any way.
6. If I am doing or building something, all the pieces are mine.
7. If it looks just like mine, it's mine.
8. If I saw it first, it's mine.
9. If you are playing with something and you put it down, it automatically becomes mine.
10. If it's broken, it's yours.

As most parents of young children know, the constant bickering (and my subsequent intervening) can get exhausting! Then, just when I am thinking I need to give myself a timeout, there will be one of those moments. One of the boys will do something silly and the other will erupt into a fit of giggles. Or Isaac will become overcome with the need to smother Noah with wet, slobbery kisses, causing Noah to roll around on the floor in a fit of laughter. One of those moments when I am reminded how special their relationship is and how lucky they are to have each other. It is in those moments that I love to just sit back and watch them interact with each other, thinking that this, right now, is what it is all about. It makes the constant breaking up of little squabbles all worth it.And sometimes, on a really good day, that magical moment will extend for several minutes, or even hours as the boys settle into play together. Yesterday was just such a day, and it was brought on by something as simple as an impromptu blanket fort. The giggles and squeals of delight that began as they crawled in and around the blanket suspended between two stools continued throughout the morning. Noah pushed Isaac back and forth in the cart. They jumped together into a pile of pillows and blankets. They played music together. Noah fixed Isaac 'lunch' in his kitchen and then 'fed' it to him at their table. It was wonderful and magical to see.
So, while I wished these moments happened much more often, I will take them when I can get them, because they are what sustain me through all those other not-so-good times. That, and lots and lots of chocolate.

A Little Snow

2011-02-03T10:00:00.004-06:00

So we had a bit of a blizzard Tuesday night. I had the privilege of driving home from work in it at midnight. The road was not really visible, but was more of a drifted over path in the general direction of home. Thankfully, I avoided the ditches (unlike many other folks, unfortunately) and made it home safely. As a nursing mother, I am glad I left when I did, because many of my coworkers ended up sleeping at the hospital and were still unable to leave in the morning. Poor Isaac would have woken up and wondered where his milk supply had gone off to.

Yesterday, the boys and I bundled up and ventured out into the snow-covered world. These pictures are not that great, because it was cold and windy and the boys weren't particularly happy about being outside, but you get the idea: there is a lot of snow. Mailboxes are buried in snowbanks (I don't think the mail actually came yesterday anyway)...That would be the sidewalk to the right of our fence, under about 3 feet of snow.This is Isaac's 'stop taking pictures and get me back in the house and out of this suit' look. Amazingly, he was actually able to crawl to me and then stand up in his puffy suit, with his little arms sticking straight out to the sides. I wish I could have taken a picture of that, it was pretty cute!Today the wind chill is in the single digits and we are staying tucked inside where it is nice and warm. Hopefully we won't be getting any more snow for a while, because I really don't know where we would put it!

Making Music Together

2011-01-31T13:09:00.015-06:00

Even before we were expecting our first baby, Curtis and I decided that we wanted music to be an integral part of our children's lives, as it has been in ours. So, while most families center their living rooms around a television or entertainment center, we decided to make a piano the center of ours. As it turns out, it is not just the center, but most of the living room because though it is a baby grand and small when compared to other grands, our living room is also relatively small, leaving little room for anything else. Despite its size, we love our 1929 Knabe piano (even though the first piano tuner we had come over wondered if it was made in Mexico and passed off as a refurbished Knabe and said it was so bad that he wouldn't even tune it before we had some extensive work done on it. We got someone else, and never called him again!).

Most nights after dinner has been cleaned up, when other families may sit down in front of the television, our family heads to the living room for some music making. Either Curtis or I play the piano and the boys play along on a rhythm instrument. Isaac bounces up and down on his knees and is quite the little maraca and jingle bell player. Recently, Noah's instrument of choice is the 'ma-ca-ca' (harmonica), when he isn't just running in circles, that is. Often, when I am playing the piano, I will glance over my shoulder to find Curtis, the percussionist, dexterously playing three or four rhythm instruments at once and keeping us all on beat. Our repertoire ranges from children's folk tunes to the Beatles to Jason Mraz to Johnny Cash. And I can belt out a dreadful version of Unchained Melody that makes Noah laugh and Curtis cringe (lovingly, of course).
A few weeks ago, all this boisterous music-making led to me wanting to learn to play the guitar. I already have about a million other balls in the air. Why not add one more? So now, armed with my Dad's guitar (which I still hold rather awkwardly), I practice my chords for a few minutes each night as well. Literally, just a few minutes. Because my goodness it really hurts my fingers to hold down those strings! Apparently it takes some time to toughen them up. We shall see...

Until then, I will play the piano or just sing along as we live out those dreams we had years ago of making our family a musical one.

Our Daily Bread

2011-01-10T11:35:00.010-06:00

When Noah was about a year old, I began making all our bread for a variety of reasons, including the avoidance of high fructose corn syrup and preservatives in store bought bread. I began using the method in The Tassajara Bread Book. Because it was pretty much a day-long process, I would make two loaves and we would eat one fresh and stick one in the freezer for the next week. It worked out well enough, but let's face it, bread really tastes best on the first day. And while it was better than store bought bread, it never seem to get that perfect sandwich bread consistency, or taste how I remember fresh bread tasting when I was a little girl.

After Isaac was born, time was short, and we resorted to buying bread once again, though I felt a bit guilty every time I put a loaf in our shopping cart. Now that Isaac is able to play for a few minutes without constant supervision, I am once again delving back into the world of bread baking. Still in search of the perfect bread recipe, I decided to try a few new techniques. A couple weeks ago, I began a sourdough starter. I tried baking a loaf (actually, a boule, a freeform ball-shaped loaf) a few days ago using the baking stone and pizza peel Curtis got our family for Christmas. I didn't bake it long enough and it didn't taste any different than regular white bread, BUT the homemade butter we made to go along with it was yummy! It was our first time making butter, and a bit of an exercise in faith that the cream would actually turn into butter if we kept shaking (and shaking, and shaking) long enough, but it worked. It is funny how something as simple as shaking a couple cups of heavy cream in a glass jar with a pebble (we didn't have a marble) thrown in for agitation produces butter. And buttermilk, of course, which I poured off and used to make some fabulous buttermilk blueberry pancakes on Saturday morning.

So the sourdough recipe needs some tweaking. In the meantime, I tried the method in the book, Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day with a truly fantastic result . The basic premise of this book is that you can mix up a large batch of dough, store it in the refrigerator, and then lop off a chunk to bake a fresh little loaf whenever you want. I was a bit skeptical of the basic recipe, which contains only water, yeast, flour and salt, but followed it to the letter using our new baking stone. The result was amazing. Truly. With a crispy crust and a soft, chewy inside, it tastes just like Mom used to make. While I originally thought, "OK, who really needs to make bread everyday?" The answer is...us, apparently. Because it was so good we ate it in less than 24 hours. But that's just fine because I made another one today, and it really does require just a few minutes of work. The basic recipe uses white flour, but I am excited to try it with wheat as well. The authors also have a new book out called Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes A Day, which I may have to try if we are going to keep eating it up so fast. Until then, we are enjoying our daily bread and the wonderful smells wafting through our house.

We're Still Here

2011-01-05T12:23:00.003-06:00

It has been almost a month since I have written here. Once again, the days are full, but with what I don't know exactly. Keeping one eye on Isaac while trying to get anything else done at the same time is a full time job. From the moment he wakes to the moment he goes to sleep at night, he goes, goes, goes. Just getting his diaper changed and dressing him could be a sport in an of itself. Was Noah like this? I don't think so. Neither does my family, who got to experience his enthusiasm for life firsthand during the holidays. The only thing more exhausting than a curious baby that gets into everything, is that same baby in a non-baby-proofed house. He has a great sense of humor, darting behind doors, swinging them shut behind him, and then sitting behind them so we can't open them, all while giggling and squealing. But he is also very generous with his snuggles and kisses, and I have been known to be blinded by drool when he is in a particularly affectionate mood.

We had a quiet, simple Christmas this year. Because I prefer to give handmade gifts, my gift list was kept short out of necessity. Somewhere in those hours between the boys' bedtime and mine, I finished just a few gifts this year: a scarf for Curtis (OK...I actually finished this one the day after Christmas)...

A green gnome for Grandma.

And a soft doll for Isaac to snuggle with at night. Upon returning home after a week away, it was lovely to settle back into our familiar rhythm. For the past week or so, the days have been filled with wonderful play as a few new toys were introduced to old favorites. The tree blocks have been a big hit.

The boys are playing with each other more often now, and Isaac misses Noah when he is napping (Noah naps more than Isaac!). So do I actually, because Noah keeps Isaac happy and busy. Can you guess what game they are playing here?

We have a quiet couple of weeks coming up, and I have been doing some experiments in the kitchen...more on that next time.

~Jen

This Moment

2010-12-10T10:45:00.002-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Finding Our Tree

2010-12-08T09:23:00.001-06:00

We had our first cumulative snowfall of the season this weekend. Our Saturday morning plans were forgotten and we stayed snuggled indoors watching the snow fall. By mid-afternoon, the sun was peeking out and I headed to the stable where Winston and I had a beautiful, if a little chilly, ride around the snow covered pastures.

The next morning we celebrated third Noah's birthday with a few gifts and some carrot cake. Later that afternoon, we bundled up and went out in search of our Christmas tree. The warm glow cast upon the tops of the snow covered trees by the afternoon sun was really beautiful. We brought along a small sled to pull Isaac in and he was happy as long as we kept moving along. Of course, Noah also wanted to ride in it before long.
Alas, there was only room for one bundled boy in the tiny sled. And with neither of them able to move very well in their puffy snowsuits, Isaac soon toppled head first into the snow...
But came up smiling nonetheless. He got picked up by Curtis, who immediately set off again in search of the tree. They were truly on a mission. I ran along after them, pulling Noah in the sled, zipping between narrow rows of trees, and knocking snow off the low hanging branches onto Noah who was laughing the whole way. We finally found a beautiful tree, just in time too, for the the sun and the boys' patience (OK...probably all of our patience) were beginning to wane. Curtis did a fabulous job cutting down the tree while I warmed up Isaac's nose with kisses and Noah had a small meltdown because he fell down and couldn't get back up. We had a good laugh while dragging the tree back toward our car when Curtis asked Noah if he was doing alright, and Noah, who answers "Yes" to almost any question, said without hesitation, "NO!" We managed to get our tree back to the car and tied down tight (and by we, I mean Curtis. I stood in a barn with the boys warming up). On the way home, I think I saw a look of longing in Curtis' eyes as we passed the Christmas tree vendor in the church parking lot with all the trees pre-cut and lined up, snow-free and ready for purchase. Between the cold noses and toes, and some minor meltdowns, I was beginning to think my idea to cut our own tree had been a flop. But then, as we got home and piled out of the car, Noah said, "That was fun!" And that right there, made it all worth it.

Winter Book Basket

2010-12-01T10:00:00.001-06:00

As I sit here on this first day of December, the first snow of the season is falling gently outside. Though we are all snuggly warm in our woolens, it is cold outside. We have begun decorating our house for the holidays, and have exchanged the autumn books in our book basket for winter ones. Over the next month we will be reading the Nativity Story and about all things snow and winter.
In our winter book basket:
Room for a Little One: A Christmas Tale by Martin Waddell
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
The Tomten by Astrid Lindgren
Winter by Gerda Muller
The Mitten adapted by Jan Brett
First Snow in the Woods, Stranger in the Woods, and Winter Friends by Carl R. Sams II and Jean Stoick
Snow by Cynthia Rylant
The Story of the Snow Children by Sibylle von Olfers
The Magical Snowman by Catherine Walters

We have also been reading a few special books for Noah's upcoming birthday:
On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman
The Twelve Gifts of Birth by Charlene Costanzo
Angel in the Waters by Regina DomanHappy winter reading!

Organizing the Play Space

2010-11-21T12:28:00.011-06:00

A few months ago, I began to realize that despite our focus on keeping just a small number of toys available for the boys to play with at one time, there was beginning to be more than could be neatly organized on the one small shelf of our living room end table. We decided that a bookshelf would be the best way to organize their things in the small area between our kitchen and living room where we spend most of our time. We had a custom bookshelf made at a local store and then I finished it myself with some homemade jojoba oil and beeswax polish (instructions here). The polish worked great and I think I may like it better than the kind you can buy. The shelf turned out really lovely, and was just what we need to open up this area while allowing for organization and room to play. The top of the bookshelf is now home to our seasonal display and a basket of books that are currently in rotation. We keep several seasonal books and a few favorites in the basket at a time, rotating the favorites in every couple weeks. The rest are stored away in a closet 'library' awaiting their turn. We have a similar, smaller 'library' for toys that are not currently age appropriate for either of the boys. In the coming months, we will return Isaac's baby toys and teethers to the library and bring out the puzzles and shape sorter.

The top shelf has a basket of wooden animals, a basket of knitted animals, some large shells we found while on vacation on Sanibel, and a soft doll. The middle shelf contains some stacking toys, a basket of various sized soft balls, and a small laundry basket with colored silks. Basically, things that are safe to be pulled off without hurting a certain little creeping baby. On the bottom shelf are all things wheeled and Isaac's little basket of teethers and rattles. The small train and its track hang out in a basket alongside the shelf. These few toys, along with Noah's larger wooden train, the play kitchen and pushcart are plenty to keep the boys busily at play.

I am loving this newly organized play space. Keeping similar items in their own space or basket makes it easy for Noah to help clean-up and get everything back to its special place at the end of the day. Even Isaac knows where to go to find his little basket of toys. I also love how it has opened up this little corner of the living room and we can now walk through and into the kitchen without having to go around the other side of the couch. More importantly, the boys are loving it, and will hopefully spend many hours playing happily here while I work nearby.

This Moment

2010-11-12T15:52:00.004-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A photo (or two!) capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

(Tuesday morning, after getting the boys up, fed, dressed, and to the doctor's office for Isaac's check-up, I found out I was a week early for his appointment. So we went home and spent the rest of the morning lounging outside on a beautiful, 68 degree November day.)

Warmth

2010-11-06T13:55:00.008-05:00

While the days are getting shorter and colder, I have been thinking a lot more about warmth. We are reading several articles in our Waldorf playgroup about the importance about protecting babies and young children from the elements and keeping them warm so that more of their vital energies can be utilized for growth and development, and not heating their little bodies. One of the articles we are reading can be found here. More about dressing babies specifically can be found here, as well as in the longer article here. While I knew about this some time ago, and make an effort to dress the boys appropriately when we are outside, I feel that this in an area where I sometimes slack-off when we are insde. I am noticing however, as it gets colder, that even my fingers and toes are cold when we are in the house. If I need another layer and a pair of wool socks to keep warm, surely the boys would feel more comfortable in more layers as well.

Naturally, when I think about warmth, I think about wool sweaters, vests, hats, and slippers. And when I think of those things, I think about knitting. Thus, for every degree the temperature drops, my knitting "to-do" list grows longer. First off, Noah was in need of a new hat. I searched and searched for a pattern for a hat that would keep his forehead, neck, and ears warm. I ended up combining a few patterns to come up with this hat/scarf combo (shall I call it a scat?) knit in super soft Malabrigo wool (Ravelry notes here). It seems to be doing the trick and I love the golden color.

I am finishing up a pair of mittens to match, and also want to make each of the boys more vests for layering over their cotton shirts. So much to knit, and so little time. Actually, the past few days, I have been able to sneak in a few minutes of knitting here and there while Isaac is awake. He has learned to inch-worm his way across the floor, which has led to him being able to play independently for short periods, scooting around to get the toys he wants without needing to be constantly entertained by me. (That is, when Noah isn't snatching the toy away just as Isaac gets to it...but we are working on that.) Of course, he is also now able to creep across the floor to wherever I happen to be and demand to be picked up by yanking on my pants or biting my feet. Those blue eyes, when combined with the desperate mama-mama-ma of a teething baby are nearly impossible to resist. And when the fussing gets really bad, we bundle up and head to the park for some swing therapy.

Because who can't help but smile when they swing? Go and and try it the next time you are feeling blue. Another plus is that the cold, fresh air makes baby oh-so-sleepy when we head back inside. And while they nap, I knit...

~Jen

Sanibel

2010-10-27T10:34:00.003-05:00

I apologize to all our family who have been waiting for this post. Recovering from our vacation and then trying to organize a week's worth of activities into one post was too overwhelming to tackle right away. So here it goes...

It was three or four months ago that we decided that we wanted, no, needed a vacation. We needed to get away from all our regular responsibilities and spend some restorative time as a family. In choosing the destination, we wanted a place near the ocean where we could explore the shoreline and sea life, but without all the commercialism that a typical beach vacation can entail. I remembered reading some time ago about Sanibel island off the coast of Florida, known for its exceptional shelling.

In 1974, the residents of Sanibel established the Sanibel Comprehensive Land Use Plan to maintain a balance between development and preservation of the island's ecology. As a result, more than half the island is made up of wildlife refuges. There are no billboards or streetlights, and buildings cannot be any taller than the nearest palm tree. Sanibel seemed like a perfect choice for our beach adventure.

Destination chosen, we then needed to decide whether we should fly or drive. We were worried that Noah would freak out on the airplane, given his melt-downs when we have tried to even go through a drive-thru carwash. In the end, considering Isaac's continuing hatred of carseats, we decided that 4 hours of in-flight torture versus 24 hours in a car would probably be the best choice.

To prepare Noah for our trip, we got a book called The Noisy Airplane Ride and read it over and over. Before long, Noah was talking all about the trip and airplane ride. We woke up early on the morning of our flight and headed to the airport with our pile of luggage. To our amazement, the boys both did much better than we expected on the airplane. One of the benefits of Noah not watching tv at home was that he sat in his carseat on the airplane entralled for an hour and a half watching a movie on our iPod. Isaac was restless at times, but all the while charming fellow passengers with his blue eyes, big toothy grin, and chubby legs. One stewardess even held him for a while when he was particularly restless. She didn't even seen to care when he spit-up on her sweater. Eventually we were able to get him swaddled so I could nurse him to sleep.

After arriving in Fort Myers, we trudged our way through the terminal with all of our luggage and kids in hand. Though we had taken Noah's carseat with us for the airplane ride, we decided to rent one for Isaac from the car rental company. We received a rather filthy seat, which took us about an hour to install into our rental car without the instruction manual. Fed up with the difficulty of putting the seat in the car, keeping the hungry, overtired kids calm in the heat, and controlling our own emotions, we drove off to start our adventure. We stopped at a local superstore to pick up some food and supplies for the week. Would you believe that we unable to find a simple bucket and shovel for playing on the beach? While looking for some potential sand toys, we walked past a new infant's car seat that was on sale for about a quarter of the cost it was to rent our smelly one for the week. Shaking our heads in disgust, we picked up some bananas, grapes, and a package of stale cookies and continued on our way to Sanibel.

Approaching the island of Sanibel, there's a beautiful bridge (the causeway) that takes you up and over the ocean. When driving up it, it looks as though you're driving into the clouds. The small resort we were staying at happened to be on the far side of the island, and we finally pulled up to where we were staying right as the sun was setting. The first thing I noticed as I stepped out of the car were the little lizards running around everywhere. We definitely were not in Wisconsin anymore. We dropped off our bags in our room and briskly walked down the sandy path to the beach to catch a glimpse of the sun. Even though it was only our first day and we had barely settled in, it was probably the most beautiful sunset we saw the entire vacation. Bright splashes of pinks, oranges, and yellows shimmered across the cool blues of the ocean. It was a nice reminder to clear our minds and enjoy the beauty of nature and the time we all had together. We headed back to our room to make some dinner and soon discovered that our "one bedroom apartment" was actually one large room with the "bedroom" being separated by a slatted door and a dividing wall that was open at the top and bottom. Once Curtis and I finally got the kids to sleep, we sat there in the dark in silence. Obviously I wasn't going to be getting much knitting or reading done after the kids went to sleep. It would be early bedtimes for all of us on this trip.Despite missing many of his naps during our trip, Isaac was eager to start each day. He also woke everyone up at midnight, 2am, 3:30am, 5:30am, and 7am. At home, we are able to ignore Isaac's early morning babble and he will doze off for another hour or two. However, with everyone sleeping together in such close quarters, and sharing a wall with our poor neighbors, his early morning babbles could not be ignored. We soon fell into a rhythm of eating breakfast in our room before heading out to explore the island, heading home for lunch and a nap (or an attempted nap) and walking up and down the beach, which was just a short walk from our room. Often we had almost the entire beach to ourselves, as we were staying on a particularly remote area of the island, away from other resorts and condos.
Sanibel's beaches are known for their abundance of sea shells. Piles upon piles could be found along the shoreline. Amongst piles of small and broken shells, the occasional larger, intact shell could be found. Shelling is somewhat addictive. You always want to look through just one more pile, or a few more yards of beachline, in search of a new variety or a particularly pretty shell. Noah, by the third day or so, began to appreciate all of the sand to dig in. Up until then, he would continually inform us that he had sandbox in his shoes. Keeping our laughter to a minimum, we told him that it was okay and that we could wash them off when we were ready to go inside. Isaac either rode along in his carrier as we walked up and down the beach or kept cool with Curtis as they lounged under a giant umbrella and he tried to keep him for eating fist fulls of sand. We saw a lot of birds while we were on our vacation. The island is home to over 220 varieties of native birds as well as the many more migratory birds that pass through on their way south. The white ibis was a common sighting on the shore, poking it's long beak into the sand, searching for food.
One day, while Isaac and I were napping, Noah and Curtis borrowed some sandtoys from our resort owner's stash and headed to the beach to make Noah's first sand castle. Five buckets of mud and a good 30 shells later and they had built a castle fit for a king crab, complete with a shell drawbridge. A few days after arriving, we left our room early (Isaac's idea) to do some shopping. After discovering that life on the island was very laid back, with pretty much nothing opening before 11:00 am, we continued to the other end of the island for a short hike see the Sanibel lighthouse.
We also spent some time on Captiva, a small island just North of Sanibel. We were amazed by the luxurious houses on this tiny island, set off the road, their grand staircases partially hidden in lush tropical vegetation. On Captiva, we lounged on the beach and splashed in the water. I discovered that the ocean is the world's best white noise machine, and Isaac dozed off in his carrier while I walked up and down the beach, watching the tiny living coquina shells frantically dig themselves back into the sand after each retreating wave left them exposed where I had been standing. This beach had fewer broken shells, so we were able to go barefoot and Noah and Curtis practiced wading amongst the waves in the shallow water. Noah was intimated by the big waves, but did pretty well as long as he was distracted by watching sailboat off in the distance. Near the end of our trip we went to the Bailey Matthews Shell Museum where we saw some exquisite shells from around the world. We left knowing much more about the various kinds of shells and their uses throughout history (a couple hundred years ago, you could buy a chicken with 50 cowries, or a bride for several thousand of the tiny shells!). Meanwhile, Curtis was silently hoping that a large broken shell I found on the beach was an artifact from a native tribe.

The weekend before our departure was the beginning of what is known as 'Ding Darling Days' in Sanibel. It's an annual celebration of the large nature preserve on the island, and there were a number of events and exhibits. We walked through a butterfly house, saw a bald eagle up close, made a stuffed manatee out of a pantyhose and some cardboard, and visited a touch tank with some sea stars and living shells. In the afternoon, we had the opportunity to go on a guided boat ride in the mongrove estuary. We were lucky enough to see a few dolphins, the large nostrils of a manatee coming up for air, some fins of a shark, jumping fish, and plenty of birds.
The day before we left, we went on a nature tram tour through the reserve. We had a great time learning about all of the various trees and wildlife. That night, after catching one last sunset, I had a traditional meal of stone crab for our last dinner on the island. We took dessert "to go,"and after the kids were finally asleep and I opened my dessert box in the dark, I was delighted to find that they had accidentally given me not one, but two, pieces of key lime pie. I had to eat it all, of course, since it was our last night.
One more exhausting day of travel and we were almost home. Noah finally had the melt-down we had been expecting all along as we made our final landing in Madison. His tiredness and the pressure in his ears finally got the best of him. Despite the mountain of laundry that overtook our living room, we were so happy to be home and sleeping in our own beds.

So there you have it. I wouldn't exactly call it a 'relaxing' vacation with two young children and less sleep than we are used to at home, but it was great to get away from work and chores and spend time together for a week in some natural surroundings that are so very different from those we are used to.

Celtic Vest

2010-10-08T12:16:00.002-05:00

It has been a quiet week here. We are recovering from what we think was food poisoning. All of us, excluding Isaac, came down with a stomach flu on Monday and it has been a slow return to normal. I did manage to finish up the last few rounds on a Celtic Milo vest for Noah using some of the yarn from our excursion to the Sheep Festival. It is dark gray Coopworth Lamb, a bit scratchy, but fine over another shirt. I found a scarf pattern with this Celtic cable on it and adapted it for knitting in the round. I think the final result looks a little bit like a knight's chain mail, which is funny because I would have finished it in time for Michaelmas last week, but got knocked down by a cold. Yep, a cold, and then the stomach flu. It has been a joyous week. Anyway...I may have to make a knight's hood to match from the leftover yarn.Yesterday, as soon as the vest was finished drying, I stuck it on Noah, put Isaac's Owl Vest on him and headed out for a nice fall walk to the park. Unfortunately, I did not realize that the temperature had soared into the high 70s since we had been out earlier in the day. Needless to say, the vests were stripped off as soon as we reached the park. So there we all were; the boys in long sleeves and pants, and I in my long sleeved dress and leggings hunting down the shadiest spot in the park to cool off in October. Oh, well. It will get cool eventually.
The baby is calling...
~Jen

Apple Pickin'

2010-09-30T13:20:00.004-05:00

Last Saturday was a perfect fall day for a family activity that I have wanted to do for some time now: apple picking. From several local orchards we chose one that practices sustainable farming with little or no spraying. This is especially important when there are little ones picking and eating the fruit. After walking out to the orchards, we were a bit disappointed to find many of the varieties rather picked over, and were beginning to think we would go home with empty bags. Then, we found a few trees with apples way out of reach. With a little circus act involving me balancing on Curtis's shoulders, I would pick the apples and hand them to him one at a time, who in turn would hand them to Noah, whose job it was to put (I say put, but it was actually more like throw) them in our bags while Isaac sat nearby, pulling grass and sampling the leaves. Noah kept saying, "Izat apple pickin'?" Yes, Noah, that is apple picking family style!

After making some slow progress, I resorted to just climbing the trees and handing the apples down. Soon our bags were filling up. At one point, Noah, who has recently become very good about using the potty at home independently got his first lesson on going to the bathroom in the great outdoors, proudly announcing "I peed on a tree!"

Before long, our bags were full. We picked 44 lbs of apples! (I should probably leave out the part of the story where Curtis dropped a 22 lb bag of apples on the floor after paying for them. Imagine the gasps from the lady checking us out as well as about 20 other customers waiting in line."You were going to use those for baking, right?" she said.) Just a couple hours after getting them home, I pulled a bubbly apple cobbler out of the oven. The next day we learned how to can, and made 7 quarts of applesauce. We still have about 20 lbs left that are destined to become apple pie filling. I think we could possibly consider canning my newest obsession. It must be true what they say about children eating foods that they otherwise might not if they are able to participate in harvesting them. Before our apple picking excursion, Noah would not eat raw apples. But now, when asked what he would like for lunch, he proudly says, "apple pickin'!"

Falling Leaves

2010-09-23T20:17:00.003-05:00

It is fall, and the beginning of a new journey for Noah and I. Yesterday was our first day in the Apple Blossom Playgroup at our local Waldorf school. While our home lives have been inspired by Waldorf philosophy from the day he was born, yesterday was the first time we had a chance to spend time with other families with similar lifestyles. It was a lovely morning beginning with the mamas working on a simple craft while the children played, followed by a shared snack and tea, circle time with fall-themed songs and finger-plays, and ending with free play outside in the garden. Isaac came along, of course, and sat contentedly on my lap through the crafting. He then tried to pull my place mat and tea onto the floor during snack time, and sat in the middle of the circle during our circle time as we "ring-around-the-rosied" around him. Did you know that you can do finger-plays with ones hand while holding a nursing baby with the other? Noah, who will play independently for hours at a time at home, was very shy and stayed close by my side through most of the morning. I am hoping that in the coming weeks he will become more comfortable as he plays and explores in the new environment.

To celebrate fall and this new beginning, I thought Noah deserved some special slippers to wear during our weekly playgroup. This pattern caught my eye some time ago. It has an unusual construction for a slipper, which are first knit as a long strip with two side flaps. It took quite a bit of planning to figure out where the different squares would end up on the final slippers so that I could make an actual left and right, and not just an identical pair. Thankfully, many people have made these before me and shared their helpful notes on Ravelry. After knitting the strips, they are then sewn together in an origami-ish way. At that point, the slippers were big enough to fit my size 10 feet. However, after 3 cycles in the washing machine, they felted beautifully and fit Noah with a little room for growth. This pattern is great for using up bits and pieces of yarn. I made Noah's using KnitPicks Wool of the Andes, leftover from his knitted fruit and vegetables. The reds, yellow and orange are reminders of the changing colors of the leaves that will soon be falling from the trees. Welcome, Fall!
~Jen

September Garden

2010-09-20T16:36:00.000-05:00

I try to do most of my gardening while Isaac is napping. Unfortunately, there hasn't been much napping happening around here lately. Isaac has had a lingering cold and is also teething. The only place he isn't fussing when out of our arms is when he is outside where he is distracted by the grass and the breeze. In the garden, he even sat nearby and let me harvest some of the last vegetables of the season. As long as he had some grass to pull and a cool carrot to soothe those swollen gums, he was content.

Our sunflowers are still standing, though they are bending greatly under the weight of the heavy heads as we wait for them to dry so we can harvest the seeds. I have given in to the rabbits, leaving the fence down for the last few weeks. Actually, it just never got put back up after the lawn was mowed. But I am more soft-hearted and willing to share than I was at the beginning of the season when they were chewing off everything as soon as it sprouted. They have a little nest in the strawberry patch, and I have now decided there is not much left that needs protection from them. They might as well enjoy those stray carrots tops and get nice and fat before winter. Our rabbit guests are color discriminate when it comes to the Swiss Chard, eating only the red and leaving us the yellow and white. I harvested the last of it, along with a few carrots for an Indian Curry dish. I am still contemplating whether or not to plant some lettuce and spinach for a fall crop, and thinking of what to do differently in the garden next year. More tomatoes, more beans, more chard. Fewer rabbits and beetles. I can dream, right?

~Jen

A Sheep Festival

2010-09-17T11:56:00.002-05:00

Another belated post here...
I have this dream of someday having some sheep of my own, so that I might raise, shear, spin, and knit a hat or sweater from my own homegrown wool. Until then, I take every opportunity to live vicariously through the folks that are already doing just that. So last Sunday we packed up the boys and went to the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival. This festival, just an hour drive away, was too good to pass up. Now, I expected to see lots of sheep, spinning, milking, herding, and shearing demonstrations, and maybe even some farm equipment...

What I didn't expect was two HUGE buildings filled from wall to wall with vendors selling yarn, roving, spinning wheels, and every other possible piece of knitting paraphernalia you could imagine. I know. What was I thinking?! A wool festival without wool for sale? Silly me! It was like icing on my sheep cake! My jaw dropped and my eyes just about popped out of my head when we stepped into that first building. The best part was that almost everything was from local sheep farmers and mills. This rainbow of yarn comes from a town just miles down the road from us.

There was so much to choose from, it was overwhelming. After meandering through the various vendors a couple times, the boys and Curtis trailing behind me, I ended up getting 4 skeins from family owned Hidden Valley Farm and Woolen Mill in East Central Wisconsin. They have some really beautiful colorways. These skeins are going to become some new woolens for Noah. A big thanks to the boys for being troopers during the outing and to Curtis for going to a Sheep Festival on the same day as the Packer's first game of the season!

~Jen

Buttons, Buttons, Everywhere!

2010-09-08T11:25:00.007-05:00

This is my belated "Work in Progress" post from Wednesday, since I worked the past few days and have not had time to post it. It has been a very busy Labor Day week with over 120 babies being born so far this month! At home, the boys have been a bit under the weather this past week, which meant more snuggle time. Poor feverish Isaac actually fell asleep on my shoulder while I was rocking him. In the middle of the day. Without being swaddled. AND he stayed asleep when I laid him down. That has never happened in his entire little life!

Last weekend, before the sickness settled upon the house, I got the buttons sewn on Isaac's red jacket. The beautiful wooden buttons are from an Etsy store and came all the way from Lithuania. This jacket is still a work in progress, because I want to line it for extra warmth. The knitting is done though and it may get some wear before I take the next step and sew the lining in. Isaac's matching pilot cap is happy, snuggly, and cute...just like him.This past week I also put the finishing touches on a little cabled owl vest for Isaac. The pattern is called Milo, and it is a simple little pattern that comes in many sizes. I have plans to make more of these for both the boys. The rust colored yarn is Harrisville Highland wool that I had from way before Noah was born, and it was once a pair of longies. It is a bit coarse, and much better suited as a vest to be worn over another shirt. The little owl eyes are buttons from my Grandma's button stash. While doing all these button applications, I gave Noah the button container to play with. These buttons have provided many hours of play this week as he sorts them, dumps them, and 'cooks' with them in his kitchen. It is a wonderful activity for during Isaac's nap time, when I often have a hard time keeping his exuberant play a little more quiet. We just have to be extra careful when Isaac s awake and make sure all buttons are out of his reach. the sink is missing from Noah's kitchen because he pulls it out to use as a mixing bowl for his button cake.I think Grandma would be proud that her carefully saved buttons are getting put to use in so many ways.

~Jen

The Colt

2010-08-29T13:34:00.005-05:00

On a trip to visit our horse this morning, we discovered that Winston has proclaimed himself the adoptive father to a little weanling colt. The colt was starting to take a toll on his mama, who is not in good health (she is in another pen a few yards away). As soon as the colt and his mama were introduced to Winston yesterday, Winston became very protective of him, keeping his other pasture-mate, and even the colt's own mama, away from him. Today, mama seemed very unconcerned, while meanwhile, Winston was quite upset when I took him up to the barn and away from the colt for a few mintues so that I could groom him. They called back and forth to each other until I returned Winston to his pen. I didn't find out what the colt's name is, but Noah called him Isaac. Noah calls all babies Isaac. The colt is a cute and friendly little guy, and is doing very well for his first day away from his mama. (The masks they are wearing keep the flies out of their eyes.)
It was a beautiful, but hot morning. The freshly cut hayfields were all aflutter with thousands of Clouded Yellow butterflies. Appropriately named, as there were literally clouds of them flying all around.

As we drove away through the clouds of butterflies, we were happy to know that our kind horse is easing one little colt's transition to life away from his mama's side.
~Jen

More Sewing For The Boys

2010-08-25T14:37:00.016-05:00

Thanks to a few long naps from the boys this past weekend, a Daddy available to tend to them when they were not sleeping, and a late night or two, I have finished a couple more pairs of pants for Isaac using the Quick Change Trousers pattern from Handmade Beginnings. This time I made them 18 month size with 12 month length, and they seem to fit pretty well with room to grow. First up, Elephant pants, lined with flannel.
Next up, and quite possibly my favorite thing that I have ever sewn, the Fairytale pants. This pair is reversible. On one side, red linen (left over from a tunic I made for myself) with The Three Little Pigs on the bum...
Turn them inside out and they are brown corduroy (from a pair of pants that didn't fit me) with Little Red Riding Hood on the bum.

They are thick, warm, and oh so cute! The pictures really don't do them justice. Especially when the second I step outside to take pictures in some natural light, the toddler starts yelling through the open window that he has to use the potty. Then moments after I put said toddler down for a nap and sit down to try to edit the quickly snapped photos, the little babe wakes up and stakes a claim to my lap throughout the remainder of the blogging/photo-editing session. But I digress...

I consider myself a pretty novice sewer, but after making a couple pairs of these pants, they came together pretty quickly. Now that I don't have to read each step several times, I can make a pair in about 3 hours, divided up into many, many, many smaller chunks of (nap) time. I have not yet tried to size them up for Noah, but it is on my 'To Do' List, along with about a million other things.

Another recent project was a crayon roll for Noah's Stockmar block crayons. I couldn't find a pattern that was exactly what I wanted, so I combined a few different ones to come up with my own. It turned out ok, but I am considering this one my prototype. It is made from the same red linen and Three Pigs fabric as Isaac's pants, with some cotton twill to tie it up.

The pockets are not as deep as I would have liked, but all the other dimensions came out pretty well. The elastic down the middle is for holding regular stick crayons, which we don't have yet. I may make another one or I may just live with the shallow pockets, because although the shallow pockets will bother me from here to eternity, do we really need two crayon rolls? Probably not.

Now I need to put the sewing machine away for a while and get to work on the several knitting projects I have in progress and the many more I want to get started before cold weather sets in.

~Jen (and Isaac)

August Garden

2010-08-16T16:14:00.007-05:00

The tomatoes are ready! Finally, lots and lots of Brandywine tomatoes. They were worth the wait. So far we have been slicing and eating them as fast as we can, but we are getting a little behind and I see a batch of spaghetti sauce in the near future.

The most dramatic growth in our garden this year has to be the Russian Mammoth Sunflowers. They tower above our heads and are bending over from the weight of their dinner plate sized flower heads. I told Curtis we should have planted these all around our yard and we would have had plenty of shade on the hot days we have been having. The bees seem to love them too. I haven't decided yet if we will dry the seeds for ourselves or leave them for the birds.

There has also been plenty of cucumbers and pear tomatoes. I found a great recipe for Quinoa Tabbouleh that uses almost all ingredients we have growing right in our own backyard (if only I had a lemon tree!). I have made a couple batches now and we eat it over several days, adding the feta just before serving. It is such a fresh, summer salad!

Today as I was outside harvesting some parsley and mint for another batch, I saw these little guys munching away on the carrot tops.
They are Black Swallowtail caterpillars. There are two large ones and a few smaller ones. I brought them inside and we will continue to feed them and watch them grow and change into butterflies. They are supposed to like parsley, which we have a lot of. It is funny that they were on the other side of the garden eating the carrot tops instead. Noah calls them 'ducks,' and I don't know why.

Because they had already eaten down a bunch of carrot tops, I had to harvest a few. I steamed these pretty Cosmic Purple carrots and mashed them up for Isaac to eat for dinner. He loved them of course. They were his first taste of garden goodness.The garden will soon be winding down for the summer, though I might try planting some more lettuce and spinach as the weather gets cooler. We shall see...

~Jen

This Moment

2010-08-13T10:21:00.003-05:00

Please click here to see our simple, extraordinary moment of the week. A moment I want to pause, savor, and remember.

Six Months

2010-08-12T11:29:00.003-05:00

Dear Isaac,

You are six months old today. It seems like such a short time ago that I scooped you up out of the water when, in your hurry to finally meet us, you blessed your Daddy and me with the gift of being the only ones present for your entry into this world. Six short months, and yet already I cannot remember my life without your smiling face. Happy Half-Birthday, Sunshine.
Love,

Mama

Sewing for the Boys

2010-08-09T15:42:00.007-05:00

Over the past couple of years, I have come to realize that it is really, really hard to cute pants for baby boys. I'll admit, I do have some criteria. They need to be made of natural fibers. It would be excellent if they came in colors other than blue, grey, or brown, because really, shouldn't a baby be in cheerful, happy colors? Here is the most difficult point: They need to fit over an ample-sized, cloth diapered bottom. Once a baby hits the 12 month size (even if they are only 6 months old), everything is cut so trim that it is nearly impossible to get them over a big baby bottom. There are a few companies that cut their knit pants a little roomier for cloth diapered bottoms, but they cost more than I would spend on a pair of pants for myself. And truly, I do not want to spend an arm and a leg on something that is really only going to fit for a few months. So what is the mama of a chubby, cloth-diapered baby to do? Get sewing, of course!

First up, some light-weight summer pants. These are the Huck Finn pants (for Isaac Fynn) from Weekend Sewing. They are meant to be ankle length, but I had to make the 24 month size to fit Isaac's waist and hip measurement, so they are regular pants length on him. I also made a pair that are red and white striped seer-sucker fabric (not pictured).

Next up, cool weather pants. I used the pattern for the Quick Change Trousers in Handmade Beginnings which are intended to be reversible. Instead of making them reversible, I lined them with flannel to make them super warm and soft inside for fall and winter. The pattern allows for growth by including cuffed pants legs that can be uncuffed as the baby grows. I made the 12 month size with the slight modification suggested here for accommodating the larger cloth diapered bum. They fit just about perfect right now over a cloth diaper, with some wiggle room if he is in a disposable, so I am trying another pair using the 18 month pattern with a 12 month length. I love how the pattern gives the opportunity to play with several fabrics. Cute and colorful with room to grow!

If I get adventurous enough, I may try to increase the sizing to make a pair or two for Noah as well. There is a stack of super cute fabrics just waiting to become pants for my boys.

~Jen

My One and Only

2010-08-09T08:59:00.000-05:00

With Curtis out of town on business and Noah spending the weekend with his Grandparents, Isaac got to be my one and only boy this weekend. For the first time in his little life he got all my attention to himself for four whole days. I made the most of each and every moment, filling the days with snuggling, gazing and smooching my little sunshine boy. And he drank it all in; laying in the sun listening to me play the piano, and sitting and playing next to me while I enjoyed leisurely meals picnicking in the living room.Now that he can hold a toy, he will finally sit in the stroller so we can go for long walks. Hooray! We went for lots of walks, even though it threatened to rain at any minute and was about 90 degrees outside.He also had his first rides in the Grandpa swing.

During naps, I got in some sewing and knitting time, making good progress on some projects that I will share later this week.

Tonight my other boys return, so today will be filled with more snuggling, giggles, and a million trillion kisses. Because, for a few days, he was my one and only boy.

~Jen

This Moment

2010-07-30T12:19:00.001-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

WIP Wednesday

2010-07-28T12:35:00.006-05:00

This is my first work in progress post in a long time. Part the reason is that my Tea Leaves cardigan is still in progress, and really, who wants to see the same project over and over again? The main reason though is that I had not been spending much time knitting as of late. There seems to be three categories to which my time is allotted: "The Things I Need To Do", "The Things I Should Do", and "The Things I Want To Do." Obviously, taking care of the boys and the basic tasks required to keep our house livable fit into the first category. Many things that fall off the bottom of that list land on the "Should Do" list; things like bathing (I know, this should be a need, but most days it is not) and yard work. That leaves knitting and sewing way down on the "Want To Do" list. I have found though, that by leaving the things I want to do for last, they never, ever get done. And at the end of the day, I feel a whole lot better about myself and my day if I am able to do just an hour of those things that I was considering optional. So I found myself thinking that I should re-prioritize and really try to spend just a little part of each day working on something from the "Want To Do" list. Who cares if I don't bathe anyway? Isaac and Noah don't seem to mind. A happy Mama is much more important than a Mama that smells good, right?

However, I had grown a bit bored with the Tea Leaves cardigan and was in need of a project to get me motivated to knit again. A package came from my sister at just the right time to help pull me out of my knitting funk. A fellow knitter, she sent me two skeins of super soft Malabrigo yarn, possibly in response to an email I sent her with this attached (only fellow knitters and Twilight readers will really get a kick out of it). Also in the package was a mostly completed light-weight jacket for Isaac. Ironically, the pattern, called Duck Soup, has been on my own knitting "To Do" list for quite a while. All I had to do was seam up the hood, block it, and add a toggle closure. Ta da! Nearly instant knitting satisfaction!
Chunky Isaac really fills it out, but will hopefully get a little wear out of it in the coming months. Since I finished up the jacket, I have been making an effort over the last week or so to fit knitting back into my daily rhythm. I sneak it in during those precious minutes when both the boys are napping, or after they go to bed at night. After much searching for the perfect pattern to use for a winter jacket for Isaac, I decided to use the Duck Soup pattern with a few modifications. The first time I saw this pattern, my intention was to use it to knit an oversize jacket and then felt it. Instead, I am going to make it to size and then line it with fabric. That is the plan anyway. I have never done a combination knitting and sewing project before and I really hope it turns out.The jacket is knit seamlessly (except for the top of the hood) from the top down with raglan sleeves. I should have done a provisional cast-on so that I could have seamlessly sewn up the top of the hood when it is finished, but the yarn wasn't cooperating. It is Brown Sheep's Lanaloft, a single ply, 100 % wool yarn in a color called Roasted Pepper. Overall, it is working pretty well, but it is loosely spun in parts and a bit splitty. There is also a lot of plant debris in it. The sheep must have had a good roll in the grass and weeds before it was shorn.

I don't have a lot of experience in knitting garments, and it makes me nervous when I need to make changes to a pattern. Choosing a size is complicated by the fact that Isaac is not even 6 months old and already wearing 12 month clothing. I am using the 4/5 yr pattern to accommodate my smaller gauge and hoping that it comes out to be about 18 month size. Instead of a garter stitch border, I am doing seed stitch. I am also going to use buttons instead of toggles. A good couple of hours were wasted just trying to figure out my buttonhole placement and technique. I added a few stitches to the front panels to create an over-lapping button band. I am still searching for the perfect fabric to line it with.

To top it all off, I am going to make him a new hat with this beautiful yarn from Crystal Palace called Mochi Plus.Here's hoping my new rhythm sticks and I make some good progress on this in the coming week.

~Jen

At The Park

2010-07-26T11:36:00.004-05:00

We are lucky enough to live within walking distance to several parks. Which one we go to depends on the time of day; I choose the park that is the most shaded at that particular time of day. Last night while I was at work, Noah (formerly not a fan of digging in the sand) spotted some sand toys in the garage and proceeded to dig in our garden. This morning, before we had even eaten breakfast he was trying to put his shoes on to go to the park to dig in the sand. Go figure. I convinced him to eat first, and then we packed up the toys and a blanket and headed for the 'blue park'. Even though I thought I was getting out early enough to beat the heat, I ended up stopping halfway to strip off Isaac's socks. By the time we got to the park, he was ready to lose his pants too. Once there, hot, sweaty baby practiced his sitting. It is hard to get a picture of him these days without his tongue sticking out like a little puppy.

Digging and driving boats in the sand also requires an open mouth apparently... Just like his big brother, Isaac loves to swing. I am not sure why he was praying while swinging. Maybe he thought I was pushing too high, and was praying for his life? Or is that a "Please, don't stopping pushing me" look?Another activity that Noah loved at this age was sitting and pulling grass, and Isaac loves that too. I think he was searching for a four leaf clover. It is a little surreal to live all these moments again with another baby. The little things I forgot about until memories are stirred up and relived again. They are just as sweet the second time around.

Soon, Isaac declared it was time to go home for a nap. And he continued to declare it for the entire walk home, nice and loud for the whole neighborhood to hear. He is now happily sleeping. One final picture of the sunset the other night (for you Mom - wouldn't you like a dress that color?).

Someday, we will live out in the country where we will have unobstructed views of these beautiful skies, the kids will dig in the dirt on our land and swing from the big tree out in the yard. That is my dream anyway. Until then, we will enjoy the parks, I guess.

~Jen

More Life In Progress

2010-07-22T12:03:00.013-05:00

I have been slacking in the blogging department again. Isaac continues to maintain that if he is awake, he should be held and/or entertained at all times thank you very much! A fussy baby, combined with Curtis being gone to Ohio on business all week, leaves little time for knitting or blogging or chores or other important things, like bathing! Case in point: I have been working on this same post for 3 days now, and am finaly finishing it by typing with one hand while nursing/holding Isaac with the other. Here is some of what has been going on around here this past week...

In the few minutes after he wakes up and eats, Isaac is agreeable to being put down for a few minutes. He is working on sitting up, and is pretty good at it as long as he holds himself up with his hands. He also has two new teeth and his little tongue is constantly going in and out like a little snake as he uses it to explore them. Here, he is thinking, "Gee, brother, I would really like that toy, but if I reach for it..."

"This will happen." He folds right in half. Comes in handy for sucking on ones own toes.

Noah tries to lend a hand, but Isaac is pushing 21 pounds (at least, last time we checked on the dog scale at the local pet store) and Noah can't quite straighten him despite his efforts.

Also this week, "Gumma" and "Gumpa" came for a little visit to keep me from going insane...I mean...to keep me company. Wednesday night we went to the Capitol for Madison Symphony Orchestra's weekly Concert on the Square. I don't usually drive downtown, and for good reason. It was quite the adventure, as Gumma called it. However, after we found a parking spot, took a little hike, and found a spot for our blanket, we sat down to enjoy the music. It was Beatles night! Just for us...

And several thousand of our closest friends and neighbors.

Noah waited and waited for his favorite song, sometimes asking me to fast-forward a song he didn't particularly care for. Sorry kiddo. I don't have that kind of power.

Meanwhile Isaac took it all in, sticking out his tongue, laughing, cooing, and squealing at the trees and passers-by.Finally, just as we were packing things up for the trek back to the car, they played Hey Jude for the encore. And our thousands of friends and neighbors sang along. It was one of those goosebump-inducing moments, and worth the wait (though Gumpa may not think so).

Curtis arrived back home yesterday after a long car ride from Ohio after his flight was canceled due to the storms and tornadoes that rolled through last night. I hope he is rested up, because I head back to work tomorrow and need a break from these two adorable, rather exhausting boys!
~Jen

July Garden

2010-07-13T11:53:00.015-05:00

When I look back at the pictures of the garden from just one month ago, I really cannot believe how much growth there has been in such a short period of time. The lettuce, spinach, arugula, and mesclun are done, though I have planted a new crop with the hopes that they will survive the hot summer sun. I can't bring myself to buy lettuce from the store again. Here is my garden update for July (all pictures taken with baby on my back, so not many close-ups!).
The Scarlet Runner Beans grew up the tepee and then back down again. I did not realize how tall they would get! The sunflowers are getting tall as well. Maybe a little too tall. I think they are providing too much shade for the zucchini growing beneath them.
The two varieties of cosmos starting blooming this week. I planted them with the hope that I would have enough blooms for a couple bouquets of cut flowers. The dill is also getting really tall. These were volunteers from last years crop and they are more sturdy than ever. I think they look like little yellow fireworks bursting open in the herb garden.Soon we will have some little cucumbers to nibble on. Or rather, I will have soon cucumbers to nibble on. So far, I am the only one in this house that likes them in their natural, pre-pickle state.Curtis is waiting patiently for the tomatoes. These are a yellow pear variety, good for snacking. We also have four plants with a larger heirloom variety that are doing quite well.A couple weeks ago I pulled up a carrot, just to see how they were coming and was surprised to see how big some of them were already. The Cosmic Purple and Amarillo Yellow carrots are pretty and tasty too. Along with the carrots we have harvested bush beans, onions, and Swiss chard. And last week I went out and harvested most of the basil, but not because I wanted to...The Japanese Beetles are back in full force. It is so frustrating! Every day we go out with our pail of soapy water and handpick dozens of the nasty little things. They are especially fond of Genovese basil (they leave the Purple Opal alone, for the most part), runner beans (I tried a new variety this year hoping they wouldn't like them, but no such luck!), and the strawberries. So before they destroyed the entire crop of basil, I decided to go ahead and harvest most of it to make into pesto.

If you would like to make some pesto, good on sandwiches (Curtis uses in his paninis) and adding to pasta sauce, here is my 'What To Do When The Japanese Beetles Are Eating Your Basil' Recipe:

3 cups basil

4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

4 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts (optional)

salt to taste

In a food processor (or with a stick blender) blend together 1 cup of basil, garlic, nuts and olive oil until a thick paste forms. Add the rest of the basil, Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, and salt and continue to blend. Add more olive oil as needed to reach desired texture. Adding just part of the basil to start makes it easier to blend the garlic well. The lemon juice keeps the basil from turning brown in color. I then spoon the pesto into an ice cube tray and freeze it. Once frozen, you can store the pesto cubes in a freezer bag and just take out one or two cubes as needed.

Despite the beetles, it is really a treat to be able to go outside and pick our own organically grown vegetables for dinner. I like searching for new recipes and building our meal around what is in season. The best part is when Noah actually eats what I have prepared. It makes for one proud mama :)
~Jen

Weekending

2010-07-12T11:38:00.012-05:00

This past weekend we packed up the family and headed North for a refreshing long weekend with family. Noah tried out his new wheels; an Irish Mail Cart made by Grandpa, with a custom paint job by cousin Adrianne. His legs may have to grow a bit before he can make it go by himself.Confession: I tried it too, and it was fun! I will spare you the pictures though.

Despite the hot and humid weather, we kept somewhat cool in the shade. I got in some solo swinging before being joined by Isaac. He was mesmerized by the trees overhead, and cooed and talked to them in his new sweet, high-pitched, puppy dog voice.Isaac is always aware of his brother and watches his every move. Noah likes to act goofy to get Isaac laughing. Together, they provide quite the entertainment.On Saturday, we all got dressed up for a country wedding, complete with sunflowers, an outdoor ceremony under a handmade arbor with storm clouds overhead, and a horse that really did not want to carry the bride down the aisle. Most importantly...two people in love and looking very happy indeed.The weather cooperated, just barely, waiting until after the ceremony before down pouring. Isaac snuggled with Curtis under the huge tent as we waited for the rain to pass.Before long, the sun came out again and I got a chance to visit with some of my siblings and extended family. Isaac charmed lots of people with his easy smile before getting a little sleepy. So what do you do when you have a heavy, sleepy baby and need to give your arms and back a rest? Hand him over to his Uncle Colin, who will walk him around the fields for a good long time before returning with a drool-covered shoulder and sore arms of his own.

Meanwhile, a shy Noah warmed up to his cousins while waiting for dinner, and they taught him how to be a little silly.

After his long walk, Isaac finally snuck in a little snack and snooze out on the lawn.

Speaking of being silly... Here Grandpa Ted and his brother Paul get a little goofy. I am envisioning this will be Noah and Isaac in about 75 years. Maybe minus the handlebar mustache.

And finally, some dancing. Congratulations to Tanna on Ryan on their beautiful wedding and the start of their lives together!

Each summer, our parents stand in a long line and buy boxes of peaches off a truck straight from the south. All weekend, those peaches ripened in the dark basement, until Sunday morning when they were the perfect juicy ripeness. So before driving home, I spent Sunday morning with my Mom, peeling and slicing peaches for freezing. My goodness, she was fast! I think she peeled and sliced about three peaches in the time it took me to do one. All those hours spent canning as a young girl, she says. I think it is some Grandma superpower or something. We will enjoy those frozen peaches in the months to come. For now, we also have lots of fresh ones to eat, and today I made peach cobbler. Tomorrow, peach pie. Isaac, wondering where the endless supply of arms and laps has gone now that we are back home, demanded that he watch the process from his sling.

So, despite being a little tired and having lots of laundry to do, I am glad to begin the week feeling refreshed by family, music, and lots of good food.

~Jen

Swinging and Sliding

2010-06-29T16:28:00.004-05:00

It has been a week of firsts for Isaac. He has mastered the "reach and grab," so I got out Noah's baby toys. It is a little strange to see them being used again. Deja vu, if you will. What is it about Sophie the Giraffe that babies love so much? Her soft squishiness? Her little squeak?

I love the way his pudgy little fist strangles her little neck so innocently as he attempts to shove her entire head into his mouth.

Isaac also had his first solo swing ride, which he loved of course.

And on the Noah front...he is equally as amused by the re-emergence of his baby toys. He offers them one after another to Isaac, demonstrating the proper way to jingle and shake each one.

At the park, Noah is also becoming more daring on the jungle gym, climbing to the top and sliding down all by himself.

And I think they both just woke up from their naps. So that's all for today!

~Jen

Butterfly Summer...and Catching Up

2010-06-23T11:47:00.013-05:00

"Awake to a woodpecker drummer--it's a butterfly summer!"

(from Caterpillar Spring, Butterfly Summer by Susan Hood)

One week after turning into chrysalises, our Painted Lady butterflies emerged. They were sneaky about it though and I never actually saw any of them as they came out of the chrysalis. We watched them for a few days and tried to feed them sugar water and orange slices. They did not seem too interested in eating, so we decided to release them into our garden. Most of them flew away quickly. This one stuck around for a few minutes before fluttering away. "Where flowers go?" Noah kept asking.
Now for the catching up...
This is supposed to be Work in Progress Wednesday, but lately, I feel as if the days are flying by quickly, and I don't have anything to show for it. Nothing except for a chunky baby who seems to be either nursing or sleeping or chewing on those fists. I know that that in itself should be enough of an accomplishment at the end of the day, but sometimes it just doesn't feel that way no matter how many times I tell myself that it is. He is going through a change in his sleeping patterns these past few weeks and it has been wreaking havoc on my daily rhythm, which is why I am probably feeling a bit out of sorts.
Isaac has also discovered that he has feet, though he is only able grasp them when he is naked or wearing a disposable diaper. The cloth diaper bulk interferes with his flexibility apparently. And whew! does this boy ever have stinky feet! Seriously! But I kiss them anyway because they are just so cute and soft!
We have been having lots of thunderstorms and rain. One evening last week, the sky to the west was a brilliant golden orange color while in the east, purple sky and... This HUGE rainbow formed an arc across the entire sky. It was too big to fit the entire thing in the viewfinder. I was so tempted to jump in the car and find a better vantage point, but alas it was bedtime for the boys and probably not the best idea during a thunderstorm warning. It was truly incredible though. I think every person in Madison has some version of this photo.

On Father's Day we headed to a local GoKart track for Curtis and Noah to take a ride in a "big car." Noah loves cars, especially the ones attached to the shopping carts at the grocery store that he can ride in (but that I can't steer and invariably knock into some display with), so we thought this would be a good father/son activity. They took one 5 minute ride. Noah is so quiet in new situations, it was hard to tell if he liked it or not. I love this picture because it looks like they are winning the race. Really, they are getting lapped :)
In between all those things were trips to the stable to reacquaint myself with my girl, Sable, and a leisurely ride through the fields and forest on Winston. So while I don't have anything concrete to show today as my 'work in progress', it seems I do have lots of memories and life. There you go...my life is my 'work in progress'!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-06-18T09:12:00.001-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

This Moment

2010-06-11T10:16:00.002-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Caterpillar Sleep

2010-06-08T11:32:00.004-05:00

"It's a caterpillar sleep. It's long and cozy and deep."

(from Caterpillar Spring, Butterfly Summer by Susan Hood)

Friday night when I got home from work, I noticed that our Painted Lady caterpillars were crawling to the top of their cup (which was lined with a thin piece of paper) and starting to hang upside down in a "J" formation. On Saturday evening, all but one began its transformation, shedding its final layer of skin, and revealing the chrysalis underneath. I found this so fascinating! Curtis had to make dinner because I just had to sit and watch them. It was truly amazing! Within an hour, they wiggled their way out of their skins. All but one, who was about a day behind the others. He (or she) turned into a chrysalises Sunday evening. You can see him hanging in the "J" shape in the picture on the left, taken Sunday morning. On Monday morning, I opened the cup and pinned the paper liner that they had attached themselves to onto the side of their mesh house. Now we will wait about week as they complete their transformation into butterflies!

~Jen

June Garden

2010-06-05T13:14:00.016-05:00

The garden is finally all planted and everything is growing quickly thanks to warm days and a bit of rain. If you were to take a stroll through our garden you would see...

Lots of greens, including...European Mesclun Mix

Swiss Chard

Arugula and Paris Island Cos

Many varieties of herbs...Munstead Lavender

Genovese and Dark Purple Opal Basil

German Chamomile

A few fruits...Striata d'Italia Summer Squash

Alpine Strawberries (Noah's favorite)

Finally, some vegetables, of course...Little Finger, Amarillo Yellow, Cosmic Purple carrots in the front. Red, yellow, and white onions in the back. Contender bush beans on the far right.

Not pictured (unless you look really closely at the first picture): Big Boston lettuce, cilantro, dill, borage, spinach, French and Lemon thyme, bee balm, lemon verbena, Greek, Golden and Mexican oregano, purple sage, Curly Leaf and Italian parsley, mint, chives, cosmos, Scarlet runner beans, Mammoth sunflowers, Early Russian cucumbers, Thai White Ribbed eggplant, Brandywine, Yellow Pear, and Red Robin cherry tomatoes. Whew! I think that's it.

I love to watch everything grow and fill in. I even like pulling weeds! Now we look forward to the fun part; harvesting and eating!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-06-04T08:00:00.001-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

"Burgers in his nose."

Caterpillar Spring

2010-06-03T10:40:00.014-05:00

"It's a caterpillar spring--a fiesta, a field day, a fling!

A fine time for stepping out, a fine time to wiggle about!"

(from Caterpillar Spring, Butterfly Summer by Susan Hood)

Thanks to Aunt Trisha, we are in the first days of a butterfly project at our house. Our Painted Lady caterpillars arrived a couple days ago. We will watch them over the next few weeks as they eat and grow, then wrap themselves up in chrysalises before emerging as butterflies. We will be sure to post updates as the weeks go on. If you are interested in having your own butterfly (or ant, or ladybug, or worm) project check out Insect Lore.

Another summery treat? Breakfast smoothies! I have finally reached the perfect combination of fruity thickness. The secret? Frozen fruit! It is much better than adding ice cubes, which really waters it down and ruins the nice smooth texture. For one adult size and one child size smoothie, I use about 1 1/2 cups of homemade kefir (though you could substitute any kind of milk or yogurt), a banana, and about a cup of frozen fruit. Put it all in the blender until it is nice and smooth. Today I also threw in some fresh strawberries. Yum! You don't even have to add a sweetener because it is naturally sweet and refreshing.

Finally, one cute baby picture.

Sweet baby Isaac is having a bit of a rough week. He does not want to be put down at all! I don't know if he is teething (those fists are constantly in his mouth) or is just in one of those in between stages where he wants to do something but can't quite do it so he needs to tell us all about it. He wants to be able to sit up really, really badly. "Enough of this lying on my back!" he says. Oh, and he is really good at telling Grandma all about it over the phone. He is going to give Noah some serious competition in the phone conversation department!

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! I will be at work...

~Jen

Just So Cute!

2010-05-30T17:01:00.010-05:00

I have said this before, but I am sayin' it again...Isaac loves to smile. In fact, he loves to smile almost as much as we love to make him smile. This leads to us spending large portions of our day talking in goofy voices, cooing and just generally looking silly as we try to convince those smiles to spill over into squealing, laughing territory. My absolute favorite smiles are the ones he gives me while he is nursing, when he looks up at me and grins as milk spills out of the corners of his mouth. Oh, the cuteness!At the end of the day, when it is almost time for bed, and he gets plopped on the floor in the hallway while Noah takes his bath, Isaac is still up for a good smile session with Daddy. Even though most of my photos come out blurry (he is an animated and active smiler) I can't resist snapping photos of his drooly dimpled grin.

Really, is there anything more cute than a happy, chubby baby? I think not.

~Jen

Rascally Rabbit

2010-05-29T12:19:00.003-05:00

Our garden got off to a bit of a slow start this year thanks to a furry little nighttime visitor that I will refer to here as the Rascally Rabbit (though it has been called much worse...believe me!). We tried unsuccessfully to live trap the Rascally Rabbit, but alas, nothing I could put in the trap was as appealing to said creature as the blossoms on my strawberry plants. After bringing me to tears the morning that I went out to find all the seedlings I had been growing for months and had just planted the previous day chewed down to the ground, we gave in and put up an inexpensive, ugly, but so far effective, fence around the raised garden beds to keep the critter out. It is amazing how much the Swiss Chard, strawberries, beans and lettuce have grown this week thanks to some sunshine, a little rain, and the absence of the above mentioned munching herbivore. Meanwhile, Noah is officially ready for summer after a trip to the store earlier this week for a new hat, SPF 55, sidewalk chalk, and Popsicles. Bring on the sun!
~Jen

WIP Wednesday

2010-05-26T10:47:00.004-05:00

This week I took a break from my three (or four?) other projects to make something special for a friend and coworker's beautiful baby girl. Baby Wren made an early and rather eventful arrival a week and a half ago. Thankfully, she and her mama are doing well and she is growing fabulously. I had been waiting to get started on this project until I knew whether she was a girl or a boy. Yeah! A girl to knit for! I bought this yarn (Paton's Wool in Woodrose Heather) the week before Isaac's birth thinking that just maybe I would need to be knitting something in my favorite girly color, a nice dusty rose. However, Isaac says rose is not his color, so hopefully Wren will like it. The pattern is the Child's Placket Neck Sweater, from Last-Minute Knitted Gifts. I made this sweater once before in the days before Noah was born, so I knew it was an easy knit, though I plan on adding a little something extra to make it special. Since she is a summer baby (and it has been in the high 80's around here...in WI...in May!) I chose to make it a 1-2 year size so that it will hopefully get more wear. Thank you to Wren for giving me a chance to get some girly knitting done!

~Jen

Shell Phone

2010-05-24T14:34:00.012-05:00

Amongst his playthings, Noah has a bowl of various types of seashells. He pretends they are musical instruments (and makes me play each one), food, cars, and boats. But usually, he pretends they are phones. Shell phones.

He often carries one around his pocket and throughout the day he periodically takes it out to have long, animated conversations with Grandma or Daddy. I love to listen to the inflection in his voice and watch the seriousness with which he talks.

Noah conducts some important business on his shell phone.

Oh, the imagination of a child!

~Jen

Four Years Ago Today...

2010-05-17T13:13:00.000-05:00

On a secluded Maui beach...

(All photos by Lisa Villiarimo)

A Drumming Lesson

2010-05-16T17:05:00.009-05:00

Around here, we think Isaac and his smiles are just about the cutest thing ever! It seems like all it takes is looking at him to get him to flash his amazingly cute dimples. However, whenever we grab the video camera, he becomes the most sober baby ever. Until today, that is. Curtis was giving Isaac a drumming lesson (with a little robot dancing thrown in) at the kitchen table after lunch and he thought it was great fun! I managed to get some of his performance on video. Here he is, making his video debut. You may need to scroll to the bottom of the page and pause the music player first...

This Moment

2010-05-14T08:20:00.005-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

(Noah covered Isaac with his doll blanket and laid down beside him to play 'sleepy')

A Knitted Farm Playmat: Part 1

2010-05-13T10:12:00.013-05:00

It was back to work for me this week. (Gosh, those newborns look and feel so small after hefting around my chunk!) That means back to daycare for the boys. Even though they are only there for 3.5 hours, twice a week, it is really hard to leave them. Especially poor Isaac, who will not nap while there. Our kiddos are not the kind of kids that can nap in a bright room with music or talking or other children about. Nope, they require a dark room, white noise, and a tummy sleeping position (a big no-no, I know. But when your baby has reflux, you will do anything to help them sleep). Poor Isaac is an overstimulated mess by the time Curtis picks him up. But, I digress...

Due to working Tuesday and Wednesday, this is my belated 'Work in Progress' post. I have this habit of starting multiple, rather large projects at once. I like to have a few different things going so I can choose to work on whatever project I am in the mood for at that particular moment. I currently have the Tea Leaves Cardigan, socks, and a shawl in progress. Add to that my current project and I will be busy for a long, long time.

The first time I saw a knitted farmyard playmat, I knew I wanted to make one. For those of you who have never seen one, it is a mat or rug that has different fields and gardens laid out for children to play on with toy animals, tractors and such. I got the book, The Knitted Farmyard, but it just looked too overwhelming and actually involved very little knitting and lots of embroidery. Then I saw the knitted and felted version in Living Crafts magazine, but I didn't really care for how the separate 'blocks' were all square-ish. I wanted the more realistic look of the Knitted Farmyard version.

After some thought, I decided to go with the Knitted Farmyard version, but designed my own pattern. I thought if I was going to do this, I might as well do it on a large scale. I drew my pattern on 3' x 5' piece of paper, then laid a 3' x 5' rug canvas (from Joann's) over the top and traced my pattern onto the canvas with a black marker, leaving a 2 inch border all the way around for finishing. After gathering up all my green and brown wool, I got started with the embroidery using 3 strands of worsted yarn in tent stitch.
Oh my. This is going to take forever! BUT... I really, really, like how it looks so far. The fields are latch-hooked, another thing I have never done before.
This is not the difficult project I thought it would be. The only intimidating part is how long it is going to take. But it is actually nice, mindless stitching, and the various textures and colors keep it interesting. I told Curtis that he could work on it too, if he wanted. He declined.

Well, I will never finish anything if I use my precious baby napping time blogging. Maybe Isaac will sleep all day to make up for not sleeping the previous two days? Probably not...
~Jen

In the Garden

2010-05-10T11:07:00.002-05:00

We follow a simple rhythm throughout our days and weeks. Recently, our rhythm has had to have a bit of extra flexibility due to having to incorporate Isaac's sometimes unpredictable baby needs. One thing that remains a cornerstone of our daily rhythm is getting outside everyday. Every morning, while Isaac takes his nap, Noah and I head outside, baby monitor in hand. Our first stop is the garden, where I check on all the seedlings and pull weeds while Noah rakes, mows, and drives his little car through the cilantro. Though it is still early in the season, there is a lot of life to explore and enjoy.

Herbs

Chives

Onions
Greek Oregano

If all the weeds are pulled (we spend so much time outside that I actually run out of weeds to pull!), seeds are planted, and everything is watered, I sit under the pergola or on the porch and do a little knitting while Noah plays. Occasionally, he will come sit by me for a few seconds before he is off again.

Hopefully, Isaac will soon get over his aversion to the stroller and/or baby carriers and we will all be able to take walks together in the morning. Until then, Noah and I enjoy our quiet time outside together. And our garden is very weed-free.

~Jen

"What Song You Want?"

2010-05-05T10:04:00.012-05:00

Our Quiet Family loves music. Throughout the day we sing, we play the piano, we dance (or spin), we listen to songs over the speaker system. We are a musical family. I have talked before about Noah's love for playing the piano, and he continues to develop his singing and piano playing skills. Every morning when I sit to nurse Isaac before his nap, Noah crawls up on the bench and asks, "What song you want?" This is really a question to himself, and he readily answers himself, too: "Rappi?" (Raffi). This could mean either Wheels on the Bus or Baby Beluga. "Winkle Winkle?" (Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star). "Ha Ha?" It took a while for us to figure out that one. It means I'm Yours by Jason Mraz in honor of the scat singing parts. So obvious; silly us. Curtis has been jammin' with him on that one for over a year now.

After the song is chosen, he looks to me. "Sing, Mama?" It is not really a question, but a demand, and though I am not a singer, I indulge him anyway. Let me tell you, it is a challenge to hold a tune while he is plunking away in who-knows-what-key. It doesn't really matter though, because he stops after about 10 seconds and flips through whatever book happens to be on the stand to find a new song, asking himself, "What song you want?"
Isaac finds my singing entertaining as well, especially if I bob my head back and forth and make silly faces while I sing.
Because music is such a big part of our lives, I thought our blog could use some music as well, so I added a player. Turn on your speakers Dad :) It is way down at the bottom on the page, in case you would rather turn it off. On it you will find many of the songs that are gracing the rooms of our home on a daily basis whether it be through the speakers, from our mouths, or from the piano. I hope you enjoy listening in on another little part of lives.
~Jen

The Sweetest Smell

2010-05-01T21:23:00.012-05:00

I have loved lilacs for as long as I can remember. I love the range of colors from white to deep purple and every shade in between. And of course the wonderful smell, that I have often considered to be my favorite smell. When I was a little girl, my Mom and I would go for walks after dinner and we would stop to smell the lilacs that bloomed next to the street in the neighbor's yards each spring. Sometimes, we would even take along a pair of scissors and sneak a few small clumps of the sweet blooms to take home with us. Yes, we were the Late Night Lilac Thieves. Even though the lilacs wilted quickly in a vase of water, it was worth it to bring them inside for just a day to smell the wonderful fragrance that could only be experienced for a few short weeks of the year.

A few years ago, when Curtis and I bought our house and began to landscape, I knew that I wanted a lilac bush of my own. We chose a variety called Sensation that has pretty white and purple bi-colored petals. Unfortunately, it did not bloom last year because I had gotten a little prune-happy the previous fall. Over the last few weeks, I have been watching and waiting anxiously as the little purple buds grew. A few days ago, they were finally open; a beautiful sight. That evening, I walked over and plunged my face into the bush, inhaling deeply. Something was different though. They smelled good, as far as flowers go. But not as great as I remembered, and definately not good enough to be called my favorite smell in the world.

I then realized what was different. The most fragrant smelling lilac could never compare to the smell of my sweet baby's head. It is such an indescribably sweet smell that I spend hours every day with my nose pressed to the top of his head, breathing in his scent, and trying to decribe to myself just what it is that he smells like. But an answer never comes to me, so I just sit there and breathe it in. I never get tired of that sweet smell and even avoid washing his hair with soap because I don't like how I have to wait a few hours for the scent of the the soap to disappear and his own natural baby smell to come through once more.

So, I am sorry Beautiful Lilac Bush, I have found a new favorite smell. Happily, it lasts longer than a few weeks. And I can breathe it in all day long and never get tired of it.

~Jen

This Moment

2010-04-30T12:10:00.004-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

I couldn't choose just one photo, because these photos tell a story. A story of a secret conversation between brothers that love each other very much.

WIP Wednesday

2010-04-28T11:54:00.010-05:00

I have not made a lot of progress on my knitting projects this past week, as we have been busy with a project of a somewhat larger scale: The moving of our office to the basement to free up the small room for Isaac. As Noah is a very light sleeper and Isaac is a very noisy sleeper, I don't think it would be fair to Noah to simply put them in the same room. Isaac is currently sleeping (and I use that term lightly) in his crib in our room, and while I don't foresee us moving him anytime soon, we will need to do some painting and preparations of his room before we move him into it. Which brings me to my little project for the week. Here is a sneak peek of the mobile I am working on to hang in his new room.

This move has meant some big changes for our family. The biggest (and best change, in my opinion) is that our main floor is now completely media free; no computer, and no television. However, this has posed a bit of a challenge for Curtis, who spends a good amount of time getting caught up on work in the middle of the night while he holds a restless Isaac. Did I mention (for those of you who don't know us personally) that our basement is not finished? Yup, that's right.

So, from a corner of our rather dark and chilly basement, I wish you all a wonderful day!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-04-23T17:39:00.008-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

{making music}

WIP Wednesday

2010-04-21T17:09:00.000-05:00

I am all about knitting for myself lately, it seems. After a couple years of knitting for Noah and then the coming baby (who was too big to fit into anything I spent hours and hours knitting for him), I am finally adding some pieces to my own closet. I will (hopefully) not be changing sizes as quickly as they are, so the bigger investment in time to finish these projects seems like a decent trade-off.

That brings me to my current work in progress, the Tea Leaves Cardigan. Yup, another sweater for me. The Shalom was actually the first garment I have ever knit for myself, and this will be number two! Because I am a knitter for goodness sakes! I shouldn't be wearing the old hooded sweatshirts with the broken zippers and holes worn through the elbows that I have had since before I even learned to knit! I chose Knit Picks, Wool of the Andes, a 100% Peruvian Highland wool for this project mostly because it was the only natural fiber yarn I could find in this pretty light gray color. I believe it is called Dove Heather.

As I said in the previous post, this project will keep me busy for a while. That's really alright since I don't expect to be needing a sweater soon, as the weather is finally warming up. Speaking of..it is time to get outside and plant some onion sets before the little one wakes up from his nap!

~Jen

Shalom!

2010-04-20T15:53:00.018-05:00

The Shalom Cardigan is finally done! I finished the knitting this past weekend, and then blocked it. It took several days to dry, but yesterday it was ready to get the buttons sewn on. They are from a button collection I inherited from my Grandma. I remember playing with and sorting these big green buttons when I was a little girl. At first, I was not entirely sure if they were a good fit for this sweater, but now that they are sewn on I think they look pretty nice. Maybe they are growing on me? Plus, there is something sentimental about using buttons that are probably older than I am rather than just going to the local craft store and picking out new ones.

After the Shalom was completed, I needed a quick little instant-gratification project. I knit up this stretchy headband in just a couple hours (one nap-time!). It is a narrower version of the Calorimetry pattern, and perfect for keeping those fly-away hairs out of my face when it is breezy (or shall I say windy) outside...which it often is around here. The headband also features a funky orange button from Grandma's stash!

There you go! Finally some completed projects! Tomorrow I will share my new knitting project...one that I am sure will keep me busy for a good long time.

~Jen

Growth

2010-04-17T08:44:00.006-05:00

I love walking around our yard this time of year. It seems like there is something new bursting forth with color every day. A few things blooming right now...

heavenly smelling hyacinths

tiny strawberry blossoms

lavender lilac buds

sunset-colored tulips

Wishing you a colorful Spring weekend!

This Moment

2010-04-16T08:44:00.007-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Seeing an old friend.

Pilot Hats For All

2010-04-08T15:23:00.009-05:00

I have knit a lot of pilot hats (also known as the Sweet Baby Cap) over the past few years using this great pattern as a guide. However, the pattern is written for a gauge of 7 stitches per inch, and I tend to like a heavier weight yarn for hats. It also has limited sizing options. So some time ago, I came up with a little formula so that I could make this hat in any weight of yarn and for any size head. I put my formula on Ravelry, where it has apparently helped a lot of people, so I thought I would put it here as well.

Step One
Determine your gauge by knitting a test swatch.
Example: My gauge using Berroco Jasper on #7 needles is 5.5 st. per in.

Step Two
Measure the head of the recipient in inches. Measure around where the actual hat will sit: from the nape of the neck, up over the ears, around mid-forehead, and back around to the nape of the neck. If you can’t measure the actual recipient, use the following as a guide:
Newborn: 14.5 – 15 in.
6 months-12 months: 17-18 in.
One year: 18.5 in
Two years: 19 – 19.5 in.

Step Three
Multiply your gauge from Step One by your measurement in inches from Step Two.
Example: 5.5 st/in. x 19 inches = 104.5 stitches, rounded up to 105 stitches.

Step Four
Figure out the number of stitches between increases and decreases. To do this: Take your cast on number and subtract 13. (Example: 105-13 = 92)
Divide that number by 6 (92/6 = 15.333333333)

This is where it is a bit tricky. The number of stitches between the first increase and decrease takes you from the back of the neck to the ear. The second number takes you from the ear to the side of the forehead. The third number takes you to the point of the forehead. Then you back track and the fourth number takes you around to the other side of the forehead, the fifth takes you to the ear, and the sixth takes you back to the nape. Six sections total (that is why you divide by 6). You want your numbers from those sections to match up. If you get an even number after dividing by 6, you get lucky. If you get a .3333, you need to make one section a stitch longer on both sides, and if you get a .66666, you need to make two sections a stitch longer on both sides. I usually add the extra length to the nape area or the area going from the ear to the side of the forehead. So for my measurement above, using the pattern below, I would use the numbers 15, 16, 15, 15, 16, 15 (respectively, going around). The number of increase rounds also depends on the gauge of the yarn. The fewer stitches you have per inch, the less rounds you have to do. I use about 8 pattern repeats for a gauge of 5-6 stitches per inch.

Pattern:

I worked up the pattern for 7 different sets of numbers/cast-on stitches. Choose the set that is closest to your number from Step Four. (Example: If you cast on 85, continue to use the third number where there are multiple options).

I start with a 12 inch circular needle and then switch to double-pointed needles as needed.

Cast on 71, 79, 85 (105, 121, 141) st. Join to knit in round.
Knit 5-7 rounds garter stitch, depending on your preference.

Rnd A: k1, m1f, k10, 11, 12 (15, 18, 21)
sl 1, ssk, psso
k10, 11, 12 (16, 18, 22)
m1b, k1, m1f, k9, 11, 12 (15, 18, 21)
sl 1, ssk, psso
k9, 11, 12 (15, 18, 21)
m1b, k1, m1f, k10, 11, 12 (16, 18, 22)
sl 1, ssk, psso
k10, 11, 12 (15, 18, 21), m1b, k1
Rnd B: Knit
Repeat Rnds A & B 6, 7, 7 (8, 9, 10) times total. Pay attention to how your decreases line up because in the next step you won’t be counting stitches anymore and will want to be able to tell where to make your decreases so they keep lining up.

Continue decreases only, every other rnd until 7 st. remain. You may also do decreases on every round once you get close to the top for a more rounded peak. Break yarn and thread through remaining stitches to bind off. To attach I-cord ties, find the earflaps and pick up three stitches along the cast-on edge. Knit I-cord ties about 8 inches long.

Questions or errors? Let me know!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-04-08T15:18:00.005-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

WIP Wednesday

2010-04-07T00:10:00.001-05:00

I am still plugging away at my Shalom Cardigan, but to keep things a little more interesting I will share a different project this week. I started working on my first quilt during the last weeks of my pregnancy. It is a Turning Twenty quilt, made from twenty fat quarters of Heather Bailey's Nicey Jane fabric. The cool blues, greens and yellows match our living room and kitchen perfectly, and I love how the punch of pink and red stands out in contrast. Before Isaac was born, I got as far as sewing together all the individual blocks.

Then, for obvious reasons, it sat untouched for a couple weeks. When Isaac was 3-4 weeks old and taking some lovely, long newborn naps, I finished sewing the blocks together to complete the top of the quilt. I also decided on and ordered a backing fabric that has more of the pink for contrast (the floral pattern on the lower right).

I got as far as washing the backing fabric, and then it sat, once again untouched for a few weeks. Isaac's morning naps are now much shorter and more hit and miss than before. Yesterday, however, I did manage to get the backing fabric ironed and ripped to size. Ironing six yards of fabric is a big accomplishment, I think!

Isaac woke up from his nap when I was halfway through with the ironing and was kind enough to sit in his refurbished bouncy seat as I finished up. I am still so amazed that a baby of mine will sit for a few minutes without being held that I felt compelled to photograph it!

Ok, enough chubby baby cuteness...

My goal for this week is to get the backing of the quilt sewn together. After I pick up some batting, it will be ready for (eeek!) actual quilting. That part is making me a bit nervous. I mean, I really don't want to mess it up after putting so much time into it. I want to do free motion stippling on the sewing machine, but will definitely need to practice on a smaller project before taking that on. Plus, I don't even want to attempt it until I can be sure that I will have several hours of uninterrupted time. In other words, this project is probably going to sit again for several weeks (or months) until I finish it up.

Happy crafting everyone!

~Jen

A Spring Robin

2010-04-05T16:56:00.013-05:00

Around here, it is not officially Spring until you see your first robin of the season. When I saw this pattern months ago, I knew it would be the perfect Easter gift for Noah. I even finished it on time!

You may remember the egg from last week's sneak peak...
Turn the egg inside out and...
It turns into a robin!

The pattern for this adorable reversible toy is in the book Itty-Bitty Toys by Susan B. Anderson (a fellow Madisonian). The pattern was originally written for a bluebird, but as I can't remember the last time I actually saw a bluebird, I made a robin instead. The patterns in this book are cute and clearly written the way toys should be knit (in my opinion): in the round, with invisible increases and minimal seaming. It is also spiral bound so it actually stays open to the correct page! I will definitely be making some of the other projects in this book.
Happy Spring, once again!
~Jen

First Smiles

2010-04-03T12:14:00.006-05:00

Is there any better reward for weeks of crying, sleepless nights, and spit-up than those first baby smiles? I think not. Getting Isaac to smile at the funny black box in front of my face is a bit of a challenge though. Here are my blurry (because if I took the time to adjust shutter speed, he would be out of his 2 minute "happy mood" window) attempts...all of them. How could I pick just one? :)

Oh, those dimples. They are going to melt many hearts in his lifetime!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-04-01T15:15:00.007-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Isaac enjoys his first afternoon outside on a beautiful spring day as we prep the garden for spring planting.

Works in Progress

2010-03-31T08:00:00.002-05:00

In crafty areas of Blogland, Wednesday is a day for bloggers to share their current work in progress (WIP). In an effort to post here more, and to provide some incentive for me to actually finish some of my projects, I am going to start sharing some of my current WIPs. While I have several projects going right now, the rate of progress is slow due to the fact that my crafting time is pretty sparse. I do, however, have lots of time to plan future projects as I type and search Ravelry one-handed while nursing and holding a sleeping baby. I will try to post something new every week, but if all else fails, I will post the same project again and again until it is finished!

This past week I have been working on a cardigan for myself. The yarn is Knit Picks Cadena, a bulky wool and alpaca blend. It was originally for another sweater that was nearly finished (as in, all but one arm sewn on) before I realized that with this bulky yarn, the final sweater weighed, oh...about 5 pounds! So, I ripped it out and have been working on a Shalom Cardigan, which I have already ripped out once because I decided to add a few more buttons and stitches than the pattern calls for. Now I am about halfway done with the yoke...again.

The other project, which I just started yesterday, is for Noah for Easter though I don't know if I will finish it on time. I will keep the final project a secret until it is completed, but here is a sneak peak.

Oh, it is such a beautiful day outside, I am not sure how much knitting will get done. Maybe the Easter Bunny will come finish my projects for me? Happy creating, everyone!

~Jen

This Moment

2010-03-26T09:19:00.005-05:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. I am going to try to make this a new weekly ritual here on Our Quiet Place.

Welcome Spring!

2010-03-22T15:14:00.006-05:00

This past weekend, we welcomed Spring with a visit to a local sheep farm to see all the new arrivals. We saw piglets, rabbits, chickens, turkeys, calves, and chicks, but the highlight was the newborn lambs. There is not much left to say, except that they were soooo cute!

Sleeping newborn lamb.

Newborn twins with their mama.

Older lambs playing and resting.

A sweet lamb face.

Rambunctious lambs climbing on their mamas.

On Becoming A Brother

2010-03-19T15:32:00.000-05:00

One of my first thoughts after Isaac was born was how happy I was that Noah would have a brother to grow up with. Despite Noah's first words upon seeing his new baby brother being, "Bye, Baby", he has taken to being a big brother in his own easygoing style. Just as he pretty much ignored my growing belly during the pregnancy (other than the fact that it made snuggling with me more difficult), he accepted the fact that this new baby was part of our family. No big deal; one day there was no baby and now there is a baby. Right from the beginning, he was my little helper, bringing me my water bottle or the poppy (Boppy pillow) while I nursed Isaac. Other than an occasional "Hi, Baby" and suggesting that perhaps the crying baby would like to play with an egg shaker or sit in his swing, he ignored Isaac and went about his business of playing.

Over the past few weeks, however, Noah has slowly been becoming a big brother and it is truly touching to watch. I find myself stopping whatever I am doing to watch him interact with Isaac a little more each day. He now calls Isaac by his name instead of just calling him baby. At first, he pronounced it as two distinct syllables: Eyes Ick. Now the name rolls off his little tongue, and "Where's Isaac?" is the first question out of his mouth each morning. He 'cooks' things for him in his kitchen and brings him fruits and vegetables to 'eat.' He sits and chats to him while I make breakfast and tries to gently wipe spit-up off his face.

I am not jaded into thinking Noah will always be this easygoing about being a brother, but I think he is off to a good start. And I never I thought I would enjoy watching them together as much as I do.
-Jen

When I open my eyes...

2010-02-21T17:29:00.003-06:00

This is the first thing I see...

A pretty beautiful sight to wake up to, I would say.

-Jen

Welcome!

2010-02-14T11:35:00.001-06:00

Join us in welcoming Isaac Fynn, who was born safely at home in the bathtub at 2:17 am on February 12th, 2010 after an intense one hour of labor. This big 10 lb 5 oz, 22.5 inch boy was in such a hurry that he arrived 5 minutes before the midwives! Full birth story to come at a later date...

Until then, here are some pictures of Isaac's Birth Day Dinner. Grandma made Jen's favorite chicken and wild rice soup and we had a special chocolate raspberry cake with sparkling wine to toast the Birthday Boy! Isaac looked on calmly from his swing for a few minutes before joining everyone at the table.

Future posts will probably be picture heavy as our quiet family adjusts to life with a newborn.

Love,

Curtis, Jen, Noah, and Isaac

Down Again

2010-02-04T10:50:00.010-06:00

Just when I thought I was on the mend and ready to have this baby, BOOM!, I am knocked down again. This time with a sinus infection. Baby has hung in there per my request to wait until I feel better. Poor thing! It probably thinks it has the most fickle mother in the world. I do however, have a few recently finished projects to share (some of the photos have been up on Flickr for a while now). First up, Fiddlehead Mittens I finished (a while ago now) for myself. They are toasty, warm wool, with a really soft alpaca lining, all from Knit Picks.

I also finished the Branching Out lace scarf for our midwife. It actually went faster than I thought. Blocking it out was a difficult feat!

I also made some Reading Mitts (fingerless gloves) for our other birth attendant. They are made from Debbie Bliss Fez, an interesting combination of merino wool and camel.

Now for some baby projects...
This first one was a quick project. It is a kicking sack (kind of like a strapless sleep sack) made from an old felted sweater. I just cut the shape from the front and back, using the ribbing at the bottom for the waistband, sewed the two pieces together, and ta da!

After making the kicking sack, I started looking around for an actual sleep sack knitting pattern that I liked and couldn't find one. I finally settled on a vest pattern and then just continued to knit, knit, knit, increasing a few stitches every few inches. I finished it off with a drawstring casing to close it up and keep those little footsies warm.

That brings us to the end of my pre-baby "To Make" list. I did start working on a shawl to keep me and baby warm during future nursing sessions. It is made out of wonderful Malabrigo yarn, and is a pattern so simple that I may even be able to handle knitting a row or two at a time in my soon to come post-baby, sleep deprived fog. The other project is not such an easy undertaking: it is a full-size quilt for our living room made of of Heather Bailey's new Nicey Jane fabrics. This one may take a while, but I am really in no hurry and I think the finished project will be perfect for snuggling under.

I hear our little chatter-box calling that he is awake...

-Jen

Still Mama's Baby

2010-02-03T11:31:00.015-06:00

Due to being wiped out all weekend from a nasty cold, I really did not feel like taking any (possibly final!) belly shots. Chicken soup, lots of steamy baths, and snuggling on the sofa seemed more important and required about all the energy I could muster up. Now that I am feeling a bit better, I realized that we may not have many more opportunities to capture photos of my seemingly gigantic belly in natural light because, unfortunately, it is dark by the time Curtis gets home from work. So Noah and I had an impromptu photo shoot this morning and I learned how to use the timer on the camera. Here is baby at 39 1/2 weeks, rapidly outgrowing his or her living space.

Noah found it very amusing to sit on the couch and watch me set the timer and then run across the living room to pose for the picture. After a few minutes, he was excited to join in on the action. If I would have planned this a little better, I maybe would have thought to actually comb his hair... The funny thing about these pictures is that they look so serious, when in reality it was probably a pretty funny sight. Picture in your head a very pregnant lady and naked toddler running back and forth to quickly pose before the camera timer goes off!

The laying of his head on my shoulder was all his idea. I think he was trying to assure me that he is still my baby. So sweet!

-Jen

A Quiet Morning

2010-01-14T18:55:00.012-06:00

Last weekend I woke up to a beautiful warm light streaming through the bedroom window. I had been wanting to capture more photos of my growing belly and thought the lighting would be perfect. I grabbed the camera and started playing around with different exposures in preparation for a morning "photo shoot." Meanwhile, Noah climbed into the bed and tried to rouse a reluctant Daddy from sleep. I inadvertently caught some very sweet moments of my two boys. Judging by the number of views this photo got on our Flickr page, I am not the only one who thinks so.

Curtis, however, is critical of his appearance in every single picture. But he is not the one writing this post, so I am going to share more unedited shots of our quiet morning...which will probably get me in trouble :)

The actual maternity photos turned out beautiful as well, but may be a bit too, umm...revealing, to make public. It is hard to believe we will soon have another little body to snuggle in that bed.
-Jen

Preparations

2010-01-04T12:35:00.013-06:00

With only a few weeks until the expected arrival of the new baby, there are lots of preparations being made around our home. I am anxiously counting down the days until my last day of work (6 more shifts!) in between finishing up several projects and preparing for the birth. Here are just a few glimpses into what is going on around Our Quiet Place these days.

32 week belly.

An embroidered banner to welcome Baby and celebrate Valentine's Day.

Books and rice filled hot pack on the nightstand.

A knitted gift for our midwife.

Relaxing lighting for my nightly baths.

Baby supplies, and pink and blue hats made from old t-shirts. Which color will it be?

Cooookie

2009-12-19T21:45:00.027-06:00

The holidays are fast approaching. Radio stations are playing Christmas tunes all day long, there's plenty of snow outside, and the tree is up and decorated. We even received an early Christmas gift today; Mom got to stay home from work! So, we spent the afternoon wrapping gifts, relaxing and then took Grandma's suggestion that we help Noah make some Christmas cookies. Noah wanted to make sure he was the head chef in the kitchen this evening, so he climbed up on a stool and took his place in the middle of all the action. Mom and Noah got to work by pounding out the dough and rolling it thin.

It was then the time to use the cookie cutouts. We have what every household probably has: angels, trees, bells, stars, and Bobbos (aka rabbits). Noah was in charge of pushing down the cutouts. He did his best, standing up on the kitchen stool and putting all of his weight on the little tin cookie cutters.

After creating the first batch of trees, angels, and bells, Noah thought that we needed more Bobbos. In fact, that's all he said we needed to make going forward. We tried to help him make some other shapes; however, he would grab the rabbit tin and push down the cutout multiple times in the same area of the dough. Sometimes, he would take his tin and push it down on some of the previously cut out cookies. I think he was trying to make a beautiful picture of Bobbo hiding behind some trees with angels flying overhead.

We placed the cookies on a cookie sheet and let them bake for awhile. Then, it was time for the frosting and decorating. Dad started with the frosting while Mom was going to show Noah how to decorate them. Mom quickly found out that Noah has probably done this before; maybe the at baby-sitter's house? He grabbed the sugar sprinkles and started shaking and dumping various colors all over the cookies. As soon as Mom took one color away, Noah was reaching for another color to add to the cookie. The red sugar sprinkles were the dangerous ones. The opening, for whatever reason, acted as a large hole rather than the small little holes. Let's just say that there were some cookies that were decorated in one color with frosting, only to be colored red with sprinkles.

We decorated a couple dozen cookies before Noah began asking whether or not it was okay to eat one. Here he is looking at me to make sure it was really 'okay' if he finally ate one before he headed off to the bathtub.

Noah approved of the cookies and declared it a job well done. There are plenty of Bobbos for everyone to enjoy.

-Curtis

Noah's Birthday Story, Chapter TWO!

2009-12-01T10:51:00.011-06:00

Last year for Noah's birthday, we began his Birthday Story, which you can read here. In continuing this tradition, the following is a new chapter to his story.

After his first birthday, Noah saw all the seasons pass again. In the spring, he helped his Mom and Dad build and plant a garden full of wonderful things to eat.

In the summer, he went on a special trip up north where he spent a whole week with his Mom’s family and met some of his cousins for the first time.

By autumn, Noah was saying lots of words, singing songs, and could run very fast. He played in a pile of leaves and went to a local farm to help pick out pumpkins for Halloween.

Then it was almost winter again and Noah was two years old. His Mom and Dad were thankful for his smiling face every day. They especially liked it when he would climb onto their laps, lay his head on their shoulder and give a ‘baby’ hug, just like when he was a tiny newborn baby. It was becoming more difficult to lie on Mom because inside her belly a new baby was growing. Noah liked to kiss her belly and rub it gently. Soon he would be a big brother!

Beverly Hills, 90211

2009-11-21T23:18:00.014-06:00

I was given the exciting opportunity to travel to Beverly Hills on business recently. Although most of my day and evening was spent working in doors, I did take a brief moment one evening to get some site seeing in.

I decided to head over to west Hollywood to see Grauman's Chinese Theatre and the night life surrounding it. There was quite the crowd for a Tuesday evening.

On the sidewalks surrounding the theatre, you'll find the walk of fame; actors/actresses, comedians, musicians, etc.

You'll also find a number of street performers taking pictures with sight-seers. That night, I saw The Joker (from the Dark Knight), Marilyn Monroe, Yoda, and our friendly neighborhood Spider Man.

Finally, at the theatre, you get to see where all of the movie stars put their hand and foot prints in the cement. Stars such as Frank Sinatra, Marilyn Monroe, George Clooney, Harrison Ford, and Darth Vader.

Right next to the theater, you'd find the Kodak Theatre. Peering inside, you'd see columns, from floor to ceiling, that were illuminating the names of the movie titles that won 'Best Picture' at the Academy Awards. It was rather neat to read some of the older movie names. Walking up the stairs to the theatre, the columns included future years for the upcoming best pictures.

At the top of the stairs and taking a short walk right around the corner, you find yourself in the middle of the Hollywood and Highland Centre (i.e. Kodak Theatre mall). Plenty of shops and food to choose from. Across the street, you can see where they film Jimmy Kimmel Live. Unfortunately, my time was limited, so I briefly caught a bite to eat at Johnny Rocket's and headed back to my hotel.

It was fun to get out and see some of these touristy things. After a few days in Beverly Hills, I was ready to head back home to a more quiet place.

-Curtis

Nesting

2009-11-19T11:26:00.011-06:00

I have done my fair share of nesting this past week. Is 7 months too early to be nesting? I justify it by telling myself that these last 2 months are bound to go quickly with all the holidays coming up. I also wanted to get an idea of what, if anything, we need to get for the new baby. It began with me hauling up bins of Noah's baby clothes from the basement (something I probably shouldn't be doing with my sore back...but, oh well!). I discovered that spit-up stains get worse over time. Sigh. Everything got a soak and wash before finding a place in our closet, nestled between my books and Curtis's dress shirts. This, folks, is baby's 'nursery'. Well, this plus eventually a co-sleeper beside our bed that he/she will hopefully like better than Noah did.

The hauling up of baby clothes lead to an impromptu sewing project to relieve the backache: A reusable hot pack. It is simply a muslin bag with a removable cotton cover, filled with rice, flax seed, and a couple pinches of lavender and chamomile flowers that make it smell wonderful when heated up in the microwave for a minute or two. This is bound to come in handy over the next months for various aches and pains.

Finally, the washing of the woollies. I actually forgot how many little longies (wool pants) I had knit for Noah until I began sorting through the bin where all the diapers and woollies were stored. Into a warm lanolin soap wash they went before being rinsed with cool water, lanolized and laid out to dry.

The lanolin restores the wool's natural lanolin and helps keeps the woollies water-proof when used over cloth diapers instead of a traditional diaper cover. There are also a couple a sweaters hiding in the back there on blocking mats, one of which I don't think Noah ever wore. Maybe this baby will get some use out of it.

I think I got the nesting out of my system for a little while. Now it is back to my regularly scheduled holiday knitting!
-Jen

Bouncy Seat Cover

2009-11-15T10:39:00.007-06:00

When Noah was a baby, one of our neighbors, a lovely lady with four kiddos of her own, commented that I never seemed to put him down. That was very true, whether it was by choice or him pretty much demanding it. Well, one day this well-meaning lady left a used bouncy seat on our doorstep. Noah, being quite a bit bigger than her babies were at his age was too big for it, but we took it anyway so as not to hurt her feelings and stowed it away in the basement. Fast forward to now and preparing for our next baby. While this baby will also spend most of his/her time in arms, I am guessing there will be times I will need a safe place to put him/her while attending to Noah's needs. So I dug out that old bouncy seat, which was, um...well used.

After much planning and measuring, I removed the straps and sewed a new padded cover with fabric left over from the mei tai project. This was another learning project. Sewing bias tape around the crotch strap? Not good. But in the end...ta da! Re-purposed bouncy seat!

Here's hoping this baby will actually let me use it for a minute or two...

-Jen

Embroidered Baby Slippers

2009-11-11T12:00:00.005-06:00

I warned you I would be making more baby shoes. So these are very girly, I admit. But I just could not resist! They are made out of a vintage embroidered linen table runner that just happened to have a nice crocheted border as well. I will have a girl baby eventually right? If not, they are pretty just to look at...

Elven Baby Shoes

2009-11-04T11:41:00.007-06:00

Ever since I saw the pattern for these cloth baby shoes I have wanted to make some. Last night I discovered that I finally had some fabric that would work perfectly. These Elvish-looking baby shoes are made from brown linen, lined with flannel and trimmed with vintage ribbon.

They would be very quick to make if only I could figure out what my sewing machine has against sewing through flannel and a couple other layers of fabric (what is up with that!). Let's just say that Grandma's seam ripper once again got quite the workout. Despite those problems, I think I will be making more of these cuties!

-Jen

A Marvelous Weekend

2009-11-03T23:00:00.001-06:00

It was a busy, yet fun filled, weekend. My apologies for the delay in my posting. Here's a brief recap of what has gone on:

It's musical time again! This fall, the VACT is performing "Something's Afoot"; a murder mystery musical that spoofs Agatha Christie's 'Ten Little Indians'. One of the opening numbers is an appropriate title for this blog post. For this show, the orchestra is on stage and behind the scenery. It makes for some interesting acoustics, but it's fun to see and engage with the actors/actresses in between scenes. The first weekend's performances went very well. Next Thursday through Saturday are the final performances. If you're interested in seeing it, ticket information can be found here. For those who have already seen the show, thanks for coming and I hope you've enjoyed it.

Happy Birthday, Grandpa Ted! We hope you had a special day. Since it falls on Halloween, how better to celebrate it than with a 'Happy Birthday Pumpkin'?

Now, when Noah hears the rumblings of a little engine whiz past our house, he'll look at us straight in the eye and in all seriousness mention 'melmeln'. We finally caught on that he was trying to tell us that this was the 'mail man' driving by. Sometimes, during the middle of dinner he'll think he heard the 'melmeln' again and inform us, just in case we wanted to check. We think he uses this term for other meanings as well that we're still trying to figure out. If you recall one of our earlier posts, you'd most likely understand.

As you've seen in her recent post, Jen has been knitting up a storm. I'm not sure if I've seen her without knitting needles and yarn in her hands for some time now. I can't even keep up with everything she's done. She's like a machine: she knit me a hat, she knit herself a hat, she knit a friend a baby hat, and now she's working on some mittens. She's just so gosh darn talented.

Daylight savings time happened. It's getting close to the time where I'll go to work when it's dark and then return home when it's dark. If I'm in my office for most of the day, there may be a good chance that I won't see the sun. It's definitely a sign that 'ol man winter is on his way. I will mention, however, that I did enjoy that extra hour of sleep--very rejuvenating. With all that has been going on, that one additional hour made all of the difference.

Finally, it was the weekend of Halloween, one of my favorite times of the year. Maybe it's because it's one of the more creative holidays. I really enjoy seeing the kids dress up in their ingenious costumes as well as turning pumpkins into my own artwork. For those of you that aren't aware, I go a little crazy with pumpkin carving. We go and pick out the pumpkins at a local farm and then I use basic carving tools to sculpt a design. It's a tedious, delicate process, but I love the challenge involved. I always like to carve things that the kids can relate to as they visit our home for trick-or-treating. It's also fun to make the parents of the trick-or-treaters think about how the carvings could be done. In previous years, I've commonly done a number of movie characters, including action heroes (Batman, Spiderman) and cartoon (Shrek, Nemo). This year, I thought I'd go with a theme to help celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the Movie The Wizard of Oz and the 100th Anniversary of Frank L. Baum's book Wizard of Oz.

It was a full two day process to complete the designs, empty out, and then carve the pumpkins. Noah was a good supervisor to make sure I was staying on track.

Following the storyline of the film, Dorothy Gale, who lives on a Kansas farm, dreams of a better place "somewhere over the rainbow." After a tornado strikes her unconscious, Dorothy dreams that she, her dog Toto and the farmhouse are transported to the magical Land of Oz.

There, Dorothy is told by the Good Witch of the North, Glinda, to follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City and meet the Wizard of Oz, who can help her return to her home back in Kansas. Along the way, she meets a Scarecrow who would feel much happier if he only had a brain.

Later on, they meet a Tin Man, who wishes he could have a heart.

Further on down the road, they come across a Cowardly Lion, hoping to ask the wizard for courage. This one was the most challenging carving, partially due to the pumpkin's size. The Cowardly Lion took 2.5 hours to complete.

Throughout their journey to the Emerald City, they try to avoid the Wicked Witch of the West and her attempt to retrieve her sister's ruby slippers from Dorothy.

I was pretty pleased as to how everything turned out. Usually, when carving such intricate designs, the pumpkins only last for about a day and a half to two days. Despite the short lifespan of these carvings, I still think it's worth it. I found that my witch shrivels up rather than melts.

We thought that it might be fun this year to dress Noah up for Halloween again. We were coming down to the wire without fully deciding what he should wear. As we strolled through the local Target's Halloween clearance section, Noah smiled, pointed, and said, "DUCK!" The decision was made.

He wasn't too thrilled to walk around outside. He was having more fun watching the trick-or-treaters from the windows and then helping me hand out candy. After he understood that kids came to the door with every doorbell ring, he started signing to me 'more, please', as if I had some control as to when the trick-or-treaters came to the door. He tolerated the costume for just under two hours. It was pretty funny watching him waddle around as a duck.

Maybe next weekend will be a little more laid back. : )
-Curtis

Finished Projects

2009-11-03T10:22:00.002-06:00

This is going to be a very picture heavy post of all the things that have been keeping me busy on these rainy fall days. Some have been completed for quite a while and their pictures have been hanging out on our Flickr page, so sorry if this is repetitious. I have been doing more creating than blogging obviously...

First up, a diaper wrap in a soft organic merino wool, left over from another project gone bad.

As the cold weather set in early, I got to work on a new hat for Noah. It came out a tad small, but he doesn't seem to mind.

I also made him some matching mittens using a pattern from the Winter 2009 issue of Living Crafts magazine. These were my first felted project, meaning I knit them big and sent them through two wash cycles in the washing machine to shrink and felt them so they are nice and thick and warm. I added some ribbed cuffs and the ever important string to keep them together.

Whenever I get sick of my other larger projects, I take a few hours and knit a baby sock. They are easy and instant gratification. These newborn size socks are knit from Knitpicks fine merino wool. I also made a handy little baby sock blocker out of an old plastic lid.

Probably my biggest baby project, started way back in May before we even knew we were expecting another baby is this blanket made for a special little great niece that will be arriving around Winter Solstice/Christmas. After knitting a blanket for Noah, I vowed to never knit another blanket because they take soooo long to finish, but my want to make something special for this baby must have overcome that vow somehow. I made up the pattern as I went along but it is inspired by a baby blanket I saw on another blog last year that was also knit for a Solstice baby. My version is knit from Knit Picks Swish, a washable merino wool in a color aptly called 'Sunshine' (which also happens to be the color of this baby's Mama's blankie when she was a little girl). Knit from the center out, I started with snowflake lace, then moved on to the falling stars, more snowflakes and finished it off with feather and fan for a nice ripple boarder.

Up next, some more baby hats. This newborn size hat is knit from super soft Manos del Uruguay merino wool and silk blend.

I had enough yarn left for some matching cabled newborn socks. I still need to make the other one...someday when I am sick of whatever else I am working on.

This hat was made for one of Curtis's coworker's baby girl, Aurelia. I added a crocheted flower to this one for some extra girly-ness. It was fun knitting for a girl for a change!

Finally, my biggest sewing project so far was a Mai Tei carrier. We didn't really need another carrier to add to our collection of wraps and slings, but another blogging mama was kind enough to share her pattern/tutorial so I just had to try it. The main fabric is from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern collection. It was a great learning opportunity, and I made friends with my Grandmother's old seam ripper due to my sewing machine's refusal to sew through many layers of padding and fabric without getting jammed up every inch or so.

This particular pattern features a hood that can be worn up to support a sleeping baby's head or folded down as a neck rest.

Daddy and Noah were kind enough to put it on for a quick demo.

As I near the end of my 'To Make for Baby" list, I am working on a hat, mittens, and sweater for myself (!), as well as a lacy scarf for my wonderful midwife. Oh, and then I will be starting in on Noah's Christmas present. I guess the lists never end!

Back to work now...

-Jen

Our 100th Post

2009-10-28T21:24:00.000-05:00

We started this on-line chronicle of our personal family life just over a year ago and we've now come to post 100 entries. We hope that you've all enjoyed the belly laughs, the handmade projects, and the corners of our home as much as we did while we discovered them along the way. With Noah beginning to explore the many wonders of the world, Jen becoming more lovely as ever, and another little miracle on the way, it's exciting to see what the future has in store for our family.

Thanks to all who have visited our blog and supported us this past year. We hope you'll continue to check-in from time to time; we'll do our best to share whatever exciting news we can. Just know that you're always welcome to visit Our Quiet Place.

-Curtis

Pile O' Leaves

2009-10-27T17:46:00.010-05:00

Today was a sunny, crisp, fall day. It seems we have had very few of those sorts of days this fall, sprinkled amongst many cold, rainy, gloomy days. Those gloomy days have allowed me plently of time to work on my 'knitting/sewing for baby' list, but not much time for playing outside. Noah and I took advantage of today's beautiful weather by going for a walk to a nearby park so he could play in some leaves, as we don't have any trees in our yard mature enough to produce a pile large enough to actually play in. There we found a big pile ready to be jumped into!

As it turns out, Noah wasn't too interested in playing in the leaves. After it was clear that he was not going to move beyond a few tentative kicks around the edges of the leaf pile, I figured he just needed some encouragement and picked him up and plopped him down in the middle of the pile. He was not too thrilled. He spent a good amount of time trying to figure out how to get up without actually having to touch the wet leaves. Sometimes, he really is his father's son.

He did eventually make it out of the pile. And the first thing he did when we got home was drag a stool over to the sink to wash his hands.

He is probably hoping for more cold, gloomy days...

-Jen

"Pumkin Buddy"

2009-10-05T20:19:00.010-05:00

Ah, the air is crisp and cool once again. Trees are turning colors, Jen is knitting hats, and pumpkins are in need of carving! That’s right; it was time to go pick out our pumpkins for this year’s Halloween. Awesome!

It was a good year for growing pumpkins, despite rumors due to the dry summer weather. Noah and I hopped out of the van and darted towards the pallets of pumpkins. We quickly glanced at the trailers of smaller pumpkins and gourds, but then decided to race towards the larger Noah-size ones. How were we to decide?

We wandered amongst the pumpkins for awhile. There was a rather special pumpkin sitting on one of the trailers. We had to be sure to take that one home with us.

We finally picked out the ones we wanted, thanked the local farmers, and my ‘Pumkin Buddy’, Mom, and I headed home.

-Curtis

Simplicity

2009-10-04T21:50:00.010-05:00

Sometimes we need to take a step back and think what life would be like if it were more simple. Noah often challenges us with this very idea daily. As he continues to try to learn and understand the English language, he decides to take a simpler approach when speaking. Why have multiple words to describe the same basic concept? If you say a single word often enough, people will begin to understand all of the many different connotations behind it. Maybe it's his way of procrastinating at such an early age.

For instance, here are a few words in which Noah decided to generalize:

Cold: An extreme temperature change; either hot or cold.

Car: Anything that has wheels OR makes a loud grumbling noise, such as a vacuum, lawn mower, or a bike.

Bees: A non-smooth, often abrasive, texture OR maker of pain; Also, any insect, spider or creepy, crawling object.

Down: Any movement in a vertical direction.

Moo (Cow): Any object that has light color with dark spots, such as a cran-raisin muffin or a wedding picture of a couple on a beach with black lava rocks.

Sauce: Any mushy substance, such as oatmeal or yogurt. As in "Goodnight comb, And goodnight brush, Goodnight nobody, goodnight sauce."

Call: Any object that resembles a phone, can fit in the palm of your hand OR has multiple buttons, such as a remote control, calculator, or fingernail clipper.

Bobbo: Any object that resembles a rabbit, such as kitten, squirrel or mouse.

Although we often smile and hold back from laughing when he looks so seriously into our eyes and mentions one of these words with dramatic hand gestures, he has a point. Sometimes we try too hard to get our point across. It's true. A single word can have multiple meanings and it's often more effective spoken alone.

Love: Noah, Jen, Baby, Chocolate, Family, Life

- Curtis

Kefir Bread

2009-09-19T12:10:00.000-05:00

I get bored using the same bread recipe over and over, so I like to experiment with new recipes every couple weeks. This may seem obvious, but I can tell just how good my latest bread baking attempt is by how fast the bread disappears. For instance, the millet bread (birdseed bread, as Curtis called it) lasted a long time, and ended up literally going to the birds. A couple weeks ago, I was in a hurry and skipped a punch-down and rising (Mom said she used to do it with fine results). The bread ended up pretty holey and crumbly; not very conducive to sandwich making. There is still half a loaf from that batch in the freezer. That brings us to this week's recipe: Yeasted Kefir Bread.

Kefir is a cultured, enzyme-rich food filled with friendly micro-organisms that help balance your "inner ecosystem." It contains many more probiotics than yogurt and supplies complete protein, essential minerals, and valuable B vitamins. Kefir's active yeast and bacteria provide more nutritive value than yogurt by helping digest the foods that you eat and by keeping the colon environment clean and healthy. Because the curd size of kefir is smaller than yogurt, it is also easier to digest. This past week, I have started making our own kefir. You can read more about the process here. The flavor is a bit tangy by itself, but it can be used in many ways.

Noah and I have been enjoying kefir fruit smoothies for breakfast. He loves them! Kefir can be used in recipes as a replacement for buttermilk or plain yogurt. That brings us back to this week's bread...
Interestingly, because of the active yeast cultures in the kefir, it only took one packet of yeast to make three loaves of bread. It looks and tastes good so far (I always get the first slice warm out of the oven while Noah naps...yum!). We will see just how long it lasts. I am pretty sure Curtis does not know that it has kefir in it (until he reads this), though he was a bit suspicious after he sampled it when I asked if this batch was acceptable.

-Jen

Knitting for Baby

2009-09-08T18:44:00.014-05:00

This past week I finished up a couple more knit projects for the new little one. My "To Make" list is pretty long, and this is just the start of it! First up, a new wool diaper cover pattern, this one with velcro. I have never sewn on knitting before and was a bit afraid that sewing the velcro on with the sewing machine would mess the whole thing up, but it didn't turn out too bad. I think I will make some more of these, as I much prefer wraps to trying to wiggle little baby legs into pull-on soakers.

The other project is a spring jacket, my first ever Baby Surprise Jacket (probably the most popular pattern by Elizabeth Zimmerman, designed in 1968). The yarn is Noro Silk Garden Lite, a squishy blend of silk, kid mohair, and lamb's wool.

Once again it was difficult to find a gender neutral colorway. I ended up settling on this one because it reminds me of springtime; mud, new green grass, and lilacs and tulips in bloom. I actually finished knitting this one a while ago, but just got around to seaming up the shoulders and sewing on the buttons.

Now back to knitting...

-Jen

Garden Bouquet

2009-08-31T11:16:00.003-05:00

No words today, just a pretty bouquet of zinnias, dahlias, and lavender from the garden to start the week...