Oh. My. God.

This is so insanely AWESOME.

What???

Wow.

(I can't actually say anything else, just Wow. Please take a look at what else they have!)

kitchen fun

One of the things that I love/loathe about gluten free cooking is the mess that I make when I mix my flour mix.

I don't remember "regular" wheat flour getting everywhere the way that the starches that I use in my GF mixes do.

(I had already made a cursory tidy when I shot this!)

Whatevs. The mix works like a charm for practically everything so I am not going to worry about it.

Just clean it up when I'm done!




This particular mess was in pursuit of a new recipe that I tried from Molly Wizenburg's A Homemade Life that was recommended to me from the lovely Danielle.

Dutch Babies!
Not to be mistaken for toddlers in clogs, these are BAKED PANCAKES!
What what??

(I remembered to get a picture halfway through eating it, but you get the idea)

I am thinking that it probably stays puffier with the standard all purpose flour that the recipe calls for (I literally just swap out my GF mix for any calls for all purpose flour, I am a lazy GF gourmet!)
And we have since made this recipe with cinnamon and sugar instead of the lemon and confectioners sugar that the original calls for, both are delicious!

I will also admit to trying to tweak the recipe to make an Elephant Ear/Lango creation this morning that was a hilarious disaster. So I'll follow the instructions the next time I make it!

OH! AND I made a half batch in muffin tins and made us Yorkshire Puddins the other night with a roast, and THEY turned out great! (minus the cinnamon and sugar/lemon or course!)

Sunny winter walks

Seaweed! Beach!


Sail boat!



Early flowers! Otter trail!



Cool round house! Norman!



Poop on a rock! (defying the laws of gravity and physics! sort of)


xox

Nursery love

How insanely cute would a globe lamp/nightlight be in Sonny's room??




The answer is clearly Super Awesome.

I would also accept Insanely Cute.

(image found here)

I could order one from here too but I am not willing to pay $100 for a lamp.

Sorry Sonny. You are going to have to make do. With reasonable things.

Covets! I how I covet.

I have been loving adult tricycles for AGES and have been thinking about how great it would be to be able to get back into shape after Sonny by riding around on one.
I love my Beasty-clette, but she's a little too makeshifty to ride while pregnant, and she's been languishing in the carport for the last 7 months.

Poor girl, I should see if anyone else can give her a good home.

Anyway, I just now off handedly searched usedvictoria for adult tricycles and THIS CAME UP!




So amazing! Can I justify this right now? I feel like I should wait until Snny actually arrives to get a sense of what life will actually be like, but ohmygod it's so awesome!

Someone is going to scoop this up, and I will be super jealous.
(if I'm really lucky it (or something like it) will still be available in the spring.)

sigh!

Everyday Jewellery

I have realized that I don't really wear any of my own jewellery right now.

I have stopped wearing my engagement ring, since Geoff gave me THIS RING for Christmas.

Do you remember when I posted how much I LOVED it last summer?
(I may never take it off, seriously, never. take. it. off) So I am thinking about resetting my engagement ring so I can wear it on my other hand. I couldn't decide between two designs when I originally made it, and I went with the style that I could wear with my wedding band (which I made to match Geoff's)
So I am thinking that I'll make the other design for my right hand and then I get BOTH.

It's hard being a jeweller sometimes.

ANYWAY. What I am getting at is that I am sharing the jewellery that I wear everyday.
Ahem...

So my rings. And this necklace...

My mom bought me the quartz pendant and chain for Christmas a couple years ago and the Seahorse was a gift to myself from this shop which I love love love.

Seahorses are one of my favorite animals (Geoff gave me one cast in resin for my birthday and a friend brought me one back from Disneyland -of all places!- when we were 12) and I bought this little sweetheart when I found out I was pregnant, I couldn't resist it after I read this.

"if the seahorse carries the souls of deceased sailors to the underworld ~ giving them safe passage and protection until they meet their soul’s destination ... why couldn't she carry us along on her back while we travel our own life's journey?

long believed a symbol of good luck and mythical significance, this intricate and diverse little creature is full of surprises

content to roam the seas with her ambling-type motion, this calm and mild-mannered creature is symbolic of patience and contentment ~ happy with being where she is, and in no hurry for advancement

the eyesight of these tiny ponies is incredibly sharp, with each eye moving independently. take this as a symbolic message of perception and awareness of those around us and of our own situations. when we are lost or confused, the seahorse asks us to take a good look around ~ not just with our physical eyes but with our spiritual eyes ...

one of the most unique aspects of the seahorse is that the male is impregnated by the female and carries the offspring to term. this is a message of sharing the load in the home, and of gaining perspective on both sides of any situation

so, clasp this beauty around your neck, and let her lead you where she may ~ in whatever direction you'd like the current to take you ..."

So amazing. All of her stuff is amazing too, you really should check it out.
(Here)

And last but not least, my bracelets and watch...

Both bracelets are samples that I made up and never took off, the chain doesn't even have anything on it! I just like the chain. And the bangle has since evolved into the Bird Bangles (to be posted soon, I promise) and Birch Bangles (again, pictures soon)
My watch was my Amma's. My mom had a new battery put in it for me for Christmas many years ago and I've worn it ever since. (although the poor thing has been living rough since moving onto my arm (I'm a grand gesturer and bash my arms about willy nilly ALL THE TIME) and it's starting to behave erratically. I might actually have to get a new watch soon. This gives me Sad Face)

I've had people ask me if I can show them my jewellery designs whenever they hear that I make jewellery, and I don't actually wear anything that I've made myself! (my wedding band doesn't count, it's so simple) so I have been thinking about changing that, when I remake my engagement ring I'll probably never take that off either, so that counts.

And I've got a little something swirling around in my brain, a treat for myself before I close up the studio next month. But I've got a few commissions that I have to finish first, so if I don't have time for this, then it will have to wait.

But I am liking where it's going.

In my brain.

The Bump! part 2

Here are some more shots of Sonny incognito.

I think these are 27 weeks


This outfit here (red cardigan and plaid shirt) is a good camouflage ensemble. It doesn't look like I'm too big here. There are some clothes that just make it look bigger, and it freaks me out a bit. SO there are a lot of tunics and leggings in my immediate future.

28 weeks




I think I took this last one just last week so we're at 29 weeks here.


I am not very big yet, people still don't notice that I am pregnant if I am wearing my jacket and scarf, and sometimes even at work, depending on the outfit, it takes people a few minutes of staring to figure out what's going on! And I've had a couple of ladies who've already had babies telling me that they HATE me, because I guess they were a lot bigger at the same point. I'm not taking it too personally, I am happy to not be huge already, and frankly I am a little terrified of how much bigger he's/I'm going to get in the next couple of months.

Because I am sure that I'm going to "pop" soon, I have heard that this is a thing, and that I should expect it.

I should probably be posting these weekly, but I haven't managed to get myself organized enough for that lately. I will try though. Maybe Tuesdays will be Bump days? Who am I kidding?? I'll aim for weekly, but I can't commit to one day a week that it will actually happen! Even if I wanted to my schedule changes too much!

(literally as I typed that out Work called and I have to go in early!) Spooky.

The living room ReDo and The Couch

I was reminded (quite politely by the lovely Miss Sarah H) on the weekend that I still hadn't shared the "after" of our couch project.

I still don't have any pictures of the "after". Geoff and the dog study there everyday and I haven't taken the time yet to tidy it all up and make it pretty to photograph.

But I will.

HERE however are some "during" shots of the Great Living Room Re-Arrange of 2011.



(can you see Norman in the blanket there? It's hard to see him, as he is the same colour as the giant dog blanket that he lives in. Poor bugger has been sat on more times than I can count)

These are the closest to "before" and "after" pictures that I have right now.




The side table that's under the window in this picture is now in Sonny's room (it opens up into storage, so it will be a good little work table/play spot/toy storage in there. He won't be using it like that for a while, but it didn't work in the living room AT ALL.)

And the second mattress that is under the couch is also gone now. Pops came and took it up to the lake for me.

AND the same weekend we did the re-arrange I also sewed covers for all the pillows and a back rest for the couch in the same gray. I'll get my act together and stage the crap out of that couch this week and give you a REAL "after" shot.

It's pretty nice when it's not draped with giant textbooks. (I am not kidding when I say giant either. HUGE)

For Sonny

These organic sleep sacs from WeeUrban are something that I would love to grab for our Sonny.
I've heard nothing but good things about this style of sleeper and I am planning on not having too much going on in his crib so these are perfect.

Plus how cute are those designs? It's so nice to see something for babies that isn't pastels and bunnies. (bunnies are cute, but seriously) And they're local!
love love love!

Available here.

Woodgrain Earrings

I made up these simple woodgrain earrings before Christmas, and like the rest of the work that I've had photographed for a while, they've been languishing in iphoto for months.

Poor things.

love love love!

A friend just posted this on Facebook and I had to share.

Because it's SO FLIPPING AWESOME.

If it wasn't for my vow to only buy things that I really need I would find a way to get my hands on this!

I might really need this anyway. I don't know if you know how much I LOVE Pride and Prejudice.

It's a lot.

(available here)

I think it's come to this already.

It's time for slip on shoes.

It's a little embarrassing to admit that getting my leg up to do up my own shoes is becoming an issue.

Already.

We've still got three months to go.

(but I just grabbed my birkenstock sandals out of the closet because GOOD LORD this kid is a mini furnace! and the joy to slide my feet into something that required NO BENDING or leg lifting of any kind was a VERY REAL THING.)

So. Clogs are in my (hopefully near) future.

Custom Woozies

I made these a little while ago for a lovely lady and am just now getting around to sharing.

She had some stones given to her for her birthday and wanted them set into a ring and a pendant.

I am pretty happy with how these babies turned out.