Miscelaneous stuff

Every year this excellent church

converts their basement to a Bethlehem bazar. It's pretty fantastic. All the people are in character and very knowledgeable about their station. The lady selling brassware can tell you all about oil lamps, the people at this 100 year old, hand written, Hebrew scroll can tell you all about how the scroll is read. It's all very Christmasy. (Sorry about my lousy pictures - I don't know what's wrong with me.)

This is the lady who wrote the kids' names for them in Hebrew.

This girl is smashing grapes with her feet.

Here's Maggie making olive oil from olives.

Their costumes are fantastic.

You really feel like you might be in Bethlehem. The floor is covered in wood, there's salted fish and little breads. Everyone says Shalom greeting you. Everyone asks if you've heard about the baby who is said to have been born - the king of Israel.

Isn't this expensive? Isn't this crazy tons of work? Yes, but people here in the South, really love Jesus. There are even camels, and real frankincense and myrrh.

I've been fretting about all the sewing/projects I wouldn't get done in time for Christmas. But then I decided that what makes Christmas special is not the beautiful table runner, and painstaking hand-made gifts. What makes Christmas special, is the pie.

This is what is left of the cream cheese pumpkin pie that Paul made. It was so delicious. I made a cheddar crusted apple pie. It's already been devoured. However, I decided I prefer a regular crust, the texture is better. For the record, Paul's crust was flaky and tender. Wow. I didn't know he could make pie crust so well. I was impressed.

Here's the bedding I made for Boone from this duvet cover I cut up. I added the owl.

And for the few of you that check my blog and notice that I haven't been posting lately, and not many pics of Boone... that was intentional. Boone is so cute and darling, but for the last 3 weeks he's been having some terrible baby acne. I kept thinking I'd put up pictures the next week, when his acne cleared up, but it still hasn't. So now I'm swallowing my pride and letting you see my angel. Please look past the skin. He is an absolute dreamy, perfect baby.

He's growing so fast. He smiles when you kiss his face. His cheeks are so chubby. He almost never cries, and when he does, is easily soothed. He sleeps about 18 hours a day. He goes right back to sleep at night after his feeding. Really, he's been no unpleasant work. When he wakes up, I eagerly go to snuggle him. I love him being around. Who do you think he looks like? I can't decide.

These are a few of my favorite things

Citrus Scented Turkey and Cranberry Sauce

Pear, Walnut, and Feta Cheese Salad

Butter Rolls

Rum-glazed Candied Yams

Chipotle Smashed Sweet Potatoes

Caramelized Onion Mashed Potatoes

Green Beans and Pearl Onions with Tarragon Vinaigrette

Savory Spinach and Artichoke Stuffing

Cranberry Apple and Sausage Stuffing

Sourdough Bread Stuffing

Pear and Sour Cherry Flat Pie

Cream Cheese Pumpkin Pie

Cheddar Crusted Apple Pie

Pumpkin Roll

Cranberry Pecan Pie

almost as good

My friend has organized a sip-n-see at my house for this Friday. I'm very excited. With my limited party planning experience I know that an important factor in an elegant table is, levels. I've had this lovely inspiration in my head for a while, and wanted to try it out.

So I went to my favorite Goodwill, bought some plates and cups; mine is much more simple, but only cost me $4 and will store away nicely.

It's almost as good as the inspiration and only took me 30 minutes of finding, and 30 minutes of making. I imagine it with cupcakes. Maybe I can do something Christmasy with it. Hmmmmm.

I also had a little craft trade with a friend of mine. She made me an excellent sac person for Axel's birthday, and I made her daughter some pants.

And because I know you all just really want to see more pics of Boone....

Hello World

Dad your mustache is scratchy, but I sure do feel aware about men's health.

Hey Mom, why are we not eating?

Born today. 9 lbs. 3 oz. Very chubby. Very hungry. Very wiggly. Very loved. Mom is doing great, believe it or not. I pushed that huge boy out in 10 minutes, no tearing. Good start to our relationship, Boone. Labor and delivery were absolutely perfect.

Boone's car seat

I decided to redo the car seat. It has gone through 5 children. My own three, one little friend who used to be at our house 50 hours a week and came everywhere with us, and someone in our ward borrowed it. When I took it all apart to clean it I found mold growing on the underside of the foam cushion. Very scary. Luckily I had spare foam, in exactly the right thickness and just enough. So I took it all apart soaped and then hosed this bad boy. Took off all the bazillion caution stickers I never read and are terribly scratched up now. Recovered the old cover. (I love working with bias tape I discovered.) And made a new canopy from taking apart the old canopy for a pattern. I found the fabric as a remnant at my favorite posh fabric store. I love Anna Maria Horner. And have liked this fabric for some time. So when I saw it as a remnant for half price, it was all the encouragement I needed to make a new car seat for a new Reynolds. And thank goodness I did. The mold really freaked me out.

And I had just enough left to make a little blanket to tuck around the chubbers to keep him warm.

It was my first embroidery experience and I liked it more than I expected.

Tonight in Axel's prayers he said:

Please bless Boone to come safely, and that he won't cause an explosion in mom's belly, and that he'll come tonight.

I said 'Amen' loudly. Our fingers are crossed.

Record Table

The table is done. I love it. The green is the natural color of the poplar wood. It will probably turn brown with time.

Here's some old wood that I cut off, before planing. What a gorgeous transformation.

The sewing table base was left in our garage in our last house and our landlord said I could have it. 1 1/2 years later, my vision for it is finally realized.

I tried to leave some of the rough elements of the wood, like the saw mark on the front edge.

I love the nail holes and bark.

I glued it together with a spline. You can see that my planing was not that excellent. But I figure it's ok because it a rustic table.

Special thanks to my mom for helping me plane. Seriously, what kind of awesome mother agrees to plane when she visits instead of being treated to all the excitement of Nashville? You're the best.

The planer was my grandfathers. Thanks Grandpa. It still works!

And thanks to Paul who supported me through all the unmade dinners, and even did the sanding. I could say thank you for helping me cut the table top, but really we just fought about how to do it correctly and I was reminded once again why you and I and table saws don't mix. But you did look fantastic in those goggles.

adventures of a six year old who can read

I hear in the other room Maggie and Axel playing a board game where they read something and are supposed to give examples of that thing. If they get the same answer they get a point.

Axel: a type of fabric

Maggie: clothing fabric

Axel: good answer, Maggie. And orange fabric is another type.

Axel: an international beer

Maggie: I don't know

Axel: Coke

So glad he didn't know the answer to that one.

I feel like a whale. And not for the obvious reason. I love brushing my tongue. This is a new development, of the past few weeks. I usually brush my tongue for the breath benefits, but lately I just love the feel of it. Strange. And every time I think, "now I understand why whales would like it." I wonder if it will go away when the baby comes; if this is some strange pregnancy side-effect. Regardless, my breath has never been so fresh.

Birthday Bliss

I think I had as much fun at this party as Maggie did. As I made the decorations and cute little clothes, and curled her hair in the morning, I felt like a little girl that never grew up. I love kids parties. How crazy is that?

I watercolored the door sign.

I love tissue paper pompoms. I love tissue paper pompoms. I love tissue paper pompoms. These are going in the girls room until they fall apart.

Birthday banner from scraps.

Cupcakes with fruit roll-up roses on them.

Birthday Girl picked the most delicious ice cream - raspberry pomegranate. Little Sister liked it and the cupcakes.

She also picked out these beautiful little roses. I can't decide which Rose is more beautiful.

She loved all the presents. Look at that joyful surprise.

We played a lot of fun games too. I include this picture because it shows Axel winding up for a really good throw, and Maggie running for cover. Ha! This actually is a game, it's not just a free-for-all pelting session.

Couch update: See all those children on the pristine white couch. Did they get it dirty? Of course. One child actually stepped on it with his dirty shoe and left a shoe print on the cushion. A few dirt swipes, a few dried up wet spot of who knows what, and general dirtiness and lintiness. 45 seconds of light wiping with water and a microfiber cloth, and it is absolutely clean. Like wiping it off a counter. Like magic. I wonder if I'll ever get used to it. I wonder if I'll be able to have any other kind of upholstery again. I love that I can have this beautiful room, and can enjoy sharing it with little messy cupcake faces.

Hearts starve as well as bodies; give us bread, but give us roses. — James Oppenheim, "Bread and Roses"

pregnant self

Still 4 weeks until my due date. Next week I start my try-to-have-the-baby-two-weeks-early plan.

I'll let you know if it works.

Rose party

We're having a rose party to celebrate Maggie's middle name. It's a family name, and we love it. So of course, she needs something rosy to wear for the party, but I didn't want it to be a princessy type dress-up, I wanted it to be an outfit that she could wear again. And I wanted it to be easy to make. So yesterday while blog surfing this blog (wow, I'll be checking it often) I found this sweet dress. And I had enough for a shirt out of the funky rose fabric I ordered a month ago.

Also, the pants will stay covering that cute little bottom. She and Lucy often have plumber bottoms on. I think they don't have enough hips to keep their pants up.

It's a trick convincing her to take it off and save it for her birthday party. Makes me happy.

And how's my little table top coming along? Coming along.

6 years old

About a month ago as we were getting ready for church Axel said, "Mom, maybe when I'm an adult I won't believe in Jesus." Piercing fear in my chest. Surprise, because we've had many spiritually mature conversations. Panic that he might actually be serious. "Why would you say that?" "I just mean that when I'm an adult maybe I won't believe like you do." I get down on the floor. "Axel, look in my eyes. A lot of things we talk about, like the Easter Bunny, are not real. Parent's make them up just to make childhood more whimsical. But Jesus is real. We don't see him, but he is just as real as we are." Axel is looking in my eyes. I am hoping he sees that I believe. "God has promised that you can know for yourself, and you don't have to just believe me." And he didn't have anything else to say and neither did I. So I gave him a hug and he hugged me back. He hasn't said anything like that again and has returned to his excellently spiritually comments, which has soothed me greatly.

Axel turned 6 on Friday and I kept thinking, 'In two short years he'll be baptized.' And it makes me a little bit weepy and sad. I hold a belief, that I cannot support with doctrine, that before the age of 8 the devil and his angels are not allowed to actively tempt children. That they can be subjected to confusion and pain because of the effects of the Fall and agency of others, but the adversary cannot try to get them directly. So this is doctrinally unfounded, but sounds like it might be true, and so I accept it as probably true and have viewed this time in my parenthood as my cramming session. This is where I have the advantage. He learns from Paul and me without much opposition. This is the arming stage.

So as we approach his eighth year, I examine myself and ask, "Am I helping him have enough experiences where he can feel the Holy Ghost and learn how God communicates with him? Am I asking him enough questions about his life to create a habit of openness between us? Am I teaching him from the scriptures answers to his questions, so he learns the value of the word of God? Am I being an example of a true Christian? Are we laughing enough together, so that he likes me, as much as I like him?" And the answer is... no and yes both, of course.

So I've thought of a few things I can do to up my game. And my heart feels like it's growing too big for my body as I am filled with concern and pride and confidence and worry about this person who has been entrusted to me. And if you know him, you know he's a substantial person and will be an asset to man and to God. A big spirit in a still little body.

Tonight, unsolicited, in his prayers he said, "Please, comfort Gramma Tena with the Holy Ghost, and that He will whisper to her that she will see Marco again soon." Maggie said, "Please help Gramma Marco to be resurrected." And my whole body smiles.

Boone likes General Conference

I noticed Boone going crazy during General Conference this weekend, and so I shot this little clip. This represents like 1/100th of his movement. Seriously, this child is going to be wild.

Guitar frame

So, I really want music to be appreciated in our home. Which is why we have a music room. And in order to encourage music, I've decided to decorate with it. I know, I know, normal people would just play the piano or guitar, but I have to beautify them, and then look at them more than play them. But playing them is phase two of my plan. Paul used to play the guitar. He actually played a lovely little number at our wedding. But since that time 7+ years ago, the guitar has come out of it's case about 10 times. I figured that if it was in plain sight maybe he would play it. Maybe I would print music and say, "You play it, I'll sing it. It'll be more fun than watching TV". But without it in plain sight, it would probably stay in mint condition in its lovely case, under our bed.

I know there are little stands you can buy, but I wanted the guitar out of immediate reach of the children, for obvious reasons. And I discovered that you can hang them on the wall. Well, if I'm going to put it on the wall, I want it to look like art and not an afterthought. And I've had this picture on my mind for a few years.

I thought it was quite intriguing to cover the wall in sheet music. So I've come up with.....

I call it, a guitar frame. Catchy name. Yes I even purchased a picture light for it.

I did a super duper mod podge of John Lee Hooker music. No he doesn't have any special meaning to our family, but his music looked very beautiful to the eye, plentiful notes, and guitar plucking, not just piano. Also his lyrics are pretty nondescript. Like, baby baby I miss you, come on, lovin...... So not very distracting. Thank you used book store. I mod podged it to handypanel? Forget the name. It's super dark brown, kind of like thin really strong MDF.

The frame is actually crown molding that I bought, painted, glued (liquid nails really is liquid nails - never used it before - very impressed) directly onto the music board. I looked into a real frame, and one like I wanted with lots of swirlies, for this huge of a frame, would've been around $200. But this cost me $24.
Then purchased an excellent guitar hanger and put the screws through the board into the wall. It's actually really big.

So the reclaimed barn wood is to make a table top for an old sewing table that will sit below the guitar and have out records and record player on it.

I've done a little planing already

and it is hard work. How hard, you ask.

Hard. This one might take me a while.