one yard down

fulfilling the vow to use one-third of my current fabric stash before buying anything new is, i think, a vow i won't be able to keep once the warmth of spring starts to roll in. . . there are too many beautiful and simple colors i want to have floating around on little (and gigantic) bellies when the sun starts to really shine. but in the mean time, i am doing my best to use what i have. so far, it's one yard down, 25 to go.

giant pink polka dot fabric; done. chartreuse scraps from one of last year's summer dresses; gone. linen from old dress; recycled. vintage ribbon i've been hoarding for nearly two years; halved. all wrapped up in these two little skirts that i had to bribe the girls to wear with chocolate chips and promises of "just a few minutes." maybe by sunday they'll decide that these skirts are better options than halloween 2006's little red riding hood dress and a raspberry jam smeared tutu.

as for what's next, i'm thinking tweed. might be perfect for these last few weeks of winter. which, miraculously, aren't as brutal as they usually are. for the first time in the six+ years of living here, february came and i wasn't physically and psychologically expecting california spring weather. in fact, i was still reveling in winter. but tomorrow is march, and i'm not sure if i've adjusted enough to not be completely done with cold two weeks from now. . . but the daffodil stems piercing their way up through the snow are encouraging. even if i'm wrapped up in down and wool, i'll soon have their bright floppy faces to walk by.

treats

if you don't have ina garten's barefoot contessa cookbook you should get it. if for no other reason than these coconut cupcakes with cream cheese coconut frosting. they are amazing. within three days we ate 20 of these (would have eaten 24 but i managed to separate myself from four of them for a new mommy) and were still wishing for more. even chip, who is usually no giant fan of delicious sugary treats, couldn't get enough. i'm now using the left over frosting to dip my apples and grapes in and don't plan on stopping until it is completely gone.

in addition to all the sugar flowing through our veins, we got some surprise treats in the mail yesterday! how great are these hats? pam, we love love love them. and the tiny little shoes? i'm in heaven. i've been really lucky in a lot of ways with my marriage, but i totally scored with the great friends i inherited from chip. thanks so much pam- you've made our house a happier place!

eve's doodles

these drawings are some of my favorite things of all time. i know she'll have to move on in her artistic development, but for now i am insanely in love. there will be a sad period of mourning when she no longer makes this striking art out of our to do lists and paper plates.

chip ingeniously suggested that i should get these designs on fabric somehow. i've got some things in the works, and hopefully in the next week or so i'll make this idea into something for eve to twirl and run in for the spring and summer, and something for me to hang onto for the next decade or so as i watch this little girl morph.

** were eve aware i was showing her art, she would find it very important to explain that the scribbles on some of her drawings are from "ruthie being a racsal [spelled as currently pronounced] and making a mess on my paper."

happy presidents day

in honor of the presidents we've spent this three-day weekend completing all the tiny jobs around the apartment that have been neglected for the past two years. i think we can almost officially say our renovation is complete. i've also been eating. roughly estimating, i'd say 60% of my diet this week has been of "sugar and oils; consume sparingly" variety. a cheesecake left over from valentine's day, chocolate chips hanging around as rewards for ruth's continued potty training (no diaper all day sunday, including church!), chocolate peanut butter by the spoonful, and as of last night; mary todd lincoln's white cake.

the recipe is from chip's mother, who used to make this cake for her kids growing up. i love tradition and it turns out i love the cake. it tastes old fashioned in the best way possible. a nice subtle flavor thanks to the almonds and a really nice consistency. i used martha stewart's seven minute frosting, but whipped cream would also be pretty and delicious.

i skipped mixing chopped candied pineapple and cherries into the frosting, which i almost regret- it would have been so old-fashioney then. but, i didn't have any and thought the plain white frosting would make a better home for my log cabin addition. we were really close to sticking pennies all over the cake but the idea of that dirty money all over was just too gross.

we're now off to take advantage of the few daylight hours we have left. eve's begging for the museum, chip's pushing the aquarium and ruth just wants more treats. i kind of feel like a nap, but i think that is all the sugar talking. or the baby. . . tough to say at this point.

Mary Todd Lincoln's White Cake

1c butter, softened
2c sugar
     -cream together
1c milk
     -add alternately with stirred together mixture of:
3c flour, sifted
3tsp baking powder
     -add and mix well:
1c finely chopped blanched almonds
     -fold in:
6 egg white, beaten stiff
1tsp vanilla

-bake 60 minutes in well greased and floured 9x13 pan (don't over bake), cut in half lengthwise and layer. frost with any white boiled frosting or whipped cream, optionally adding 1/2c chopped candied pineapple and cherries. i'm now thinking that adding the pineapple/cherries to the frosting for the layer between the cakes would be perfect. still white and smooth but a little more exciting and appropriate for something with mary todd lincoln's name attached to it.

v is for

happy valentine's day.

today

watching the rain melt yesterday's snow.

putting together valentines for school tomorrow.

playing house in the closeted hamper. sporadically shouting (at me), "hey! you! get out of our backyard!"

making plans for the next quilt. this one will take awhile.

relaxing on the pillows i finished up on monday, courtesy of some sukie tea towels bought for cheap over a year ago.

completing final stages of potty training.

baby quilt binge

an unfinished project that has been haunting me for nearly a year and a baby shower prompted last week's binge.

finally finished this quilt made of squares i took from my mom. except for the white and red polka dot, these are all fabrics from my childhood. i had it nearly completed 10 months ago but hated the way i quilted and bound it, so it got stuck in a corner. last week i picked out all the quilting, pulled off the binding and did it for the second and final time. we're all feeling much better about it now.

started making this quilt for a friend's baby girl. tying the quilt using a little hoop took an annoying amount of time i wasn't planning on. by the time i finished tying i was sick of it, so it was put to the side and finished a few days later. in case you can't see through the folded up quilt to know what the whole thing looks like; the front is a solid piece of the little girls fabric while the back is what you see (white, yellow, striped) plus another big piece of the yellow. the polka dot binding was the reject from the first quilt. i love not wasting.

after i lost interest in the girl quilt i moved on to this one. a one-night project is so satisfying (even if it is my old standby) and especially fast when it is in little little baby proportions. a picture of the tiny blanket (30x34") unfolded made it look like a placemat. but babies are small and the very pregnant mom was happy. the opposite side is nice unbleached muslin

and although our home doesn't really need another blanket of any size floating around, i'm looking forward to the next one. hopefully for upcoming boy, who is still very very nameless.

ruth is a hellion

that's a wad of eve's hair in ruth's hand. she runs and grabs and pushes and yells and throws and then waits for the reactions to roll in with wide, excited eyes.

hair cuts

my hair. here it is, (as seen in eve and ruth's mirror which explains the serious smudges i'm too lazy and forgetful to clean). fairly anti-climactic. . . i still haven't seen the back of my head but judging from the size of a few chunks that came off with the pinking shears, it's a little rough.

just to clarify, pinking shears and eve's paper cutting scissors were not my first choice. i was maniacally impatient and so used whatever i could find in thirty seconds.

a few nights after my cut, i cut chip's hair. (have i made it clear that i have no idea what i'm doing with hair and that we never do this- not even with our kids hair? i don't know what's going on.) after i finished with chip's hair i walked into our bedroom where i found ruthie, scissors in hand, giving herself bangs. not ideal. i tried to fix things as much as i could without stabbing her in the eye. she looks mostly cute in a mini hipster way but the random chunk of hair missing above her ear (the ear not pictured) will have to just sit there until it fades in. or, i can wait a month or so and do a full-on dorothy hammill for her.

++

the more i look at that picture of myself, the crazier my eyes/expression looks. do i have a lazy eye? i blame the dirty mirror, which of course means i blame my children. what good are they if i can't use them as scapegoats for at least some of my failings?