Prostrate Before God

Drew and I took the girls to an ordination – my second, their first – on Saturday, and firstly, I must remark at how well-behaved the girls were through the nearly 2 1/2 hour celebration. G complained vehemently at not being able to see anything, but I think we were lucky to get a seat even if it was behind a big column. My favorite part is seeing the candidates lying prostrate, a very powerful moment, and the very liberal dispensation of blessings afterward (at the reception hall).

Sounds the Same

I adore the little variations (in any language) that beginning speakers make: Z's been repeating a lot of the things she hears, randomly trying out sound phrases, and if I manage to catch the phrase she's after, I'll repeat them with her to refine the pronunciation. Today she was looking at a Cinderella coloring book and started calling her Sleeping Beauty, which is "sway mei ren" in Chinese, or literally "beautiful sleeping person". We volleyed maybe half a dozen times and the closest we could come was "sway mei mei", which is more like "sleeping little sister" – she's very familiar with the term "mei-mei".

A Good Schmear

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Speaking of food, my first CSA pickup is today and I'm getting a dozen eggs, fresh ground round (beef), honey, tofu, leaf lettuce, strawberries and milk.

The Darker the Chrysalid

And then there were nine. Apparently I need to get some fresh flowers with which to feed them – squeezing a bit of sugar water onto the flower. Maybe we'll release them on Sunday during our BBQ.

The Swatch Watch

Deanna at Nell Hills sent me some new fabric swatches yesterday, which are in the same color scheme as the samples she initially sent home with us.

The only one I really liked was this "past times harvest" pattern (top), which would look fantastic on a set of chairs; the beige burlap weave was a little too light-colored for me.

Neither of the stripey patterns appealed to me, possibly because I've never been that big a fan of plaid. The two patterned pieces (names?) are actually different: the top has more pink and gold undertones, though maybe you can't tell so much when it's paired with the solid red like that; and the above is more green, esp when held against the pink and gold sample. I'm not sure what Deanna had in mind with these – I could be persuaded towards either of the patterns given the right circumstances.

Just When I Wasn't Looking

Three butterflies! Interestingly, they're the two from the napkin, and one from the RH paper disk. I know they're supposed to air their wings a bit, get the blood flowing, but then what...?

Ow, My Eye!

Saturday evening my right eye started to show a bit of redness and by Sunday it was hurting as well. Fortunately, the symptoms didn't point to pink eye, but Monday morning, I knew I had to see a doc. The short of it is, I have episcleritis, possibly associated with this pregnancy. The doc prescribed eye drops, which have improved the pain somewhat if not the general look of my eye, although I have to put up with some blurry vision as a side effect of the drops. I can't wait until this clears up.

One Finger

G's preschool class had their annual end-of-the-year trip to the zoo yesterday. (Z refused to get out of the stroller for the above picture.) Though the original forecast called for rain showers, it ended up being horribly hot and sunny, so I was thankful that the special program was being held indoors. I did not attend last year because I felt it was the perfect opportunity for me to stay home with infant Z, but I imagine the basic program is always the same: we had a story – Jungle Drums by Graeme Base – and then two young ladies discussed the various animals that one might find in the jungle, presenting pictures and (actual) pelts – of warthogs, giraffe, zebras, lions, elephant – and three animals to touch. First was a hissing cockroach, which interestingly neither of the girls shied away from touching; a snake of some sort, which even I touched with one finger; and a pygmy hedgehog, which does this strange popping motion when it feels threatened. Afterward we were turned out into the main zoo, but unfortunately Drew had to be back to the office for class (not that I begrudge the rest sweltering under the nearly 90 degree sun).

She's Gone

Drew and I had our long-awaited anniversary date night last night – we had dinner at the Elephant Bar; and finished with ice cream cones (from Poppy's) and window shopping in downtown –, and had Elizabeth over to watch the girls for us. By the time we returned home, the girls were already in bed and asleep. This morning, there wasn't much excitement at our return. The first thing BB said to me: "Mama, where's Elizabeth AhYee? She's disappeared and I want her to come back."

The Transfer

From feeding cup

to mesh basket habitat, where they will hang until emergence. Note: Two of the chrysalises fell off the paper disk, so the instructions said to place them on a clean napkin at the bottom. Good thing Drew was in charge of this matter, because they actually squirmed when he picked them up – I thought those things were hardened to the point that they couldn't wriggle – and I probably would have dropped them. Also, it was suggested that the basket be hung somewhere so any bumps to the basket wouldn't be as jolting. So that's the little window between our hearth room and the dining room. And you can see a smidge of our microwave in the lower RH corner through the doorway to the kitchen.

See You in the Next Form

They're all in the upside down position now, and there are even a few completed chrysalises. (One fell to the bottom: the accompanying info sheet said it's still possible to complete the metamorphosis and emerge as a healthy butterfly.) Interesting bit of grossness: when the caterpillar is fully cocooned, there's this black bit of what looks to be the tip of their tail that's left over outside. And what's more, there are little red blobs, which a search turned up as "frass balls" and which one website said was a sign that the caterpillar had finished feeding and was ready to turn into a pupa.

Eight Years

We celebrated by opening a new tube of toothpaste; and having a delectable laugh over the new car "smoking" in the morning sun. (Look just above the hood.) I spent the day chauffeuring – G to and from school; Z to a doc's appt; my own doc appt – and Drew got into an argument with his prof in class. For dinner we had sour cream pancakes and strawberries and whipped cream.

And for fun, we let G

and then BB take our picture.

Finally, after the ibuprofen kicked in for Z's teething-induced fever, she treated me to a leg-cial. (We're also planning a date night this weekend to either the Blue Koi or the Elephant Bar.)

Look at Them

They're huge – and starting to hang upside down.

The Painted Lady Project

AhGong sent over a butterfly garden last week, one of those caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly experiences right in your own home. I have to say, the idea of those wiggly little things *in my house* kind of creep me out, but thankfully their feeding cup doesn't have to be opened until after they've chrysal-ized. (The kit came with a mesh basket "habitat" in which the chrysalises will reside until the butterflies emerge.) But I'm amazed at how much they've grown in the few days that we've had them – just like in the book.

The Graduate

I scratch my head at these little "graduation" events, and yet we participate in them.

We had the cap and gown – white for girls, blue for boys –, which we keep; a handful of zinger songs that the kids performed; little graduation certificates, which included a narrative of what each kid wanted to be when they grew up (e.g. lots of police officers and veterinarians; G wants to be a Mommy so she can hold and take care of babies);

and a blessing by Fr Rogers. Afterward there was cake and punch in the parish hall, where one of the moms presented the teachers with a rather classy (hardcover) book containing pictures and mini bios of all the graduating kids; and the kids performed one last song/rap. There were bubbles, noisemakers and a stuffed puppy for all the students to have their classmates sign; and on the walls were posters (made by the parents) for each child containing baby pictures. Naturally, G was pleased as punch to be the center of attention – and BB was not as green as you'd think.

My Competition

I had to take the girls to Target to get some pictures printed, and while we waited, I let them admire the toys, ooh-and-aah over the dolls and princesses in particular. Of course they asked whether or not we could buy something and I steadfastly kept to my "no", so as we made our way to the registers, G lamented, "How come we don't have anything pretty [to play with]? Why don't you ever buy us anything pretty [to play with]?" (At least it wasn't a tantrum, right?) Then after dinner, BB was playing with a doll brush, i.e. a v. small one, and said, "My Alaskan mother bought me one of these."

Me: You have an Alaskan mother?
BB: Yes, her hair's pink. And she buys me all sorts of dolls and Barbies and beautiful dress-up clothes and slippers. And we live in a big big house, bigger than this one. And I have lots of siblings, at least ten, and we have lot and lots of fun. And I get to go to school everyday.
G: Which school do you go to?
BB: The same one that you do, except I'm in the "big" [Ms April's] class. I get to draw and make stuff and play with Polly Pockets and run around the playground everyday.
Me: What does your other Dad do?
BB: He goes to work everyday just like Dadda.
G: How come you didn't stay with that family longer?

Oh Deer

The neighbors weren't kidding when they told us about the deer that wander through our neighborhood, and specifically past our house on the east side. The girls and I sighted three of them yesterday afternoon scampering passed our door/window. (BB told Drew they were "moose".) When I was out in the evening changing our hummingbird feeder, I noticed this:

Do you see it: they munched the stems off those leaves and left the leaves! Other plants fared about as well, and they even chomped the tops off Drew's new strawberry plants. But there were two potted plants, one of alpine strawberries, even closer in to the house, i.e. within about two feet, that survived the attack. Maybe it's a good thing that Drew's decided to hold off on doing any serious gardening this summer, so we can figure out how best to thwart the deer first.

p.s. I'm so pleased to see so much action at our hummingbird feeder even though it's been a tad cool – and rainy.

One Size Fits Only Z

Drew just returned from a business trip to Long Island – to much squealing and many hugs and kisses. A group of them managed some sight-seeing yesterday evening (to Times Square and some revolving restaurant in Lower Manhattan), and though he didn't have much time to shop, he managed to pick up some overpriced "I ♥ NY" souvenirs for us. Unfortunately, the two larger pairs of socks fit only Z, while the smaller pair will look real cute on the new baby; and I got a pen. (I have a modest collection of writing utensils swiped mainly from hotels.) Just in case, he also picked up two Cinderella coloring books, which the girls played with for nearly an hour so that Drew and I could talk: that's a good present.

Aebleskivers

Don't know why, but I've wanted one of these aebleskiver pans for the longest time. Maybe just as a novelty, but who doesn't love breakfast? (I love also that they're served with glögg!) So my unofficial other Mother's Day present was said pan – aebleskivers for dinner last night. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough eggs for the recipe I used, so the final product might not have been exactly as it should, but...

a heap of strawberries and powdered sugar can go a long way to disguise even a beginner's attempt. (I had troubles at first because, in hindsight, the pan wasn't hot enough, and then there was leftover bits of batter stuck to the sides, which ruined subsequent batches. Eventually, I got so I could turn each with just one skewer.)

Swatch vs Swatch

I'm terribly fortunate: I'm getting new furniture with my new house. In particular, a living room set and something for the entryway. (The trusty burlap is going in the movie room downstairs.) For this project, we're enlisting the help of no less than two design consultants, one from Ethan Allen, one from a local powerhouse called Nell Hill's; both of them complimentary. I had thought about discoursing on the whole process, impressions on the designers' different methods, approaches, styles, preparedness, but I'm sure you're just interested in the nitty-gritty: the fabric swatches. Unfortunately, only NH had loaner swatches for me to bring home and share around, while EA will bring theirs around at a later date to lay out and ogle.

Initially, I was rather drawn to the greens and blues that Deanna at NH had pulled – and then there was this red (above). The "cadet camel" on the left, which has a kind of underlying stripe pattern, will be the color of the two couches, while the "blossom red" will be two accent pillows with that brown velvety piece as piping around the edge.

Since the living room is so roomy, we also contemplated having one or two chairs for cozying up to the fireplace, using the "woodlake henna (paisley-ish)" as the main fabric and piping the "graham peat" on the bias, i.e. diagonally (as pictured).

And for fun, Deanna sent this "cornelius teastain" too, which maybe can't withstand kids since it's 100% linen? (Today's an overcast, rainy day so we're out of luck for vibrant natural-light pictures.) There will also be an assortment of side tables (depending on the room layout); an area rug underneath everything; and a dark leather ottoman coffee table, no buttons, for the middle. I was rather in love with a rug ottoman – some examples – that Deanna showed us, but then I'd be stuck always matching my room accents to the colors on the rug.

p.s. Here's my latest estate sale acquisition, which is currently residing very usefully in the entryway. (That's a functional drawer.) Interestingly, the top flips open and rotates 90 degrees (to hold the hinged edge) to double the tabletop space. If it remains there, I shall tuck a colorful little ottoman underneath for the getting on and off of shoes. Otherwise, I'm keeping my eye out for a dresser and chair combo. A mirror and lamp should complete the picture in either case.

It's About Time

We had a free moment yesterday evening after dinner but before tackling the clean up of the playroom – whew, you should have seen it! – and bedtime, so we hid Easter eggs in the girls' room. (G's also been asking to dye eggs, but that'll have to wait for the weekend: we already ate the majority of the eggs I had boiled.)

Z got a head start, remembering exactly what this was all about, but exchanging her pretty basket for the brown paper. (Kids on the move just don't take very good pictures.)

BB admiring her stash. Z popped her fourth egg on accident, and sat there nursing the (wrapped) tasty and then badgering me to "kai" (open) and "tse" (eat) without a care for the rest.

G wouldn't sit still for a picture either, until there was some candy in her mouth/hand.

And Z enjoyed more than enough by the generosity of her sisters.

Two Wheels, Not Two Barrels

Though Drew talked big about getting me a shotgun for Mother's Day – yes, we're those kind of people –, I got a beautiful 3-speed instead. I would have taken it for a spin, but 1) the seat was too high and we had other places to be (peach cobbler and ice cream at Elizabeth's); and 2) the guy at the bike shop was adamant about not letting me ride until after I'd had the baby. So it'll just have to be pretty in the garage for a little while longer. (Roughly four to five weeks left to go, but who's keeping track?)

For fun, and because it's been a bit chilly in the evenings, we lit a fire in the hearth room, only to find that some of the branches of one of our oak trees are hanging over the chimney!

So we lit a fire in the living room instead. And I'm modeling the (farmer's) market bag that Elizabeth and her family got me for Mother's Day. The strap is an old car seat belt (covered in fabric), and the lining has green bell peppers on it: darling! Judy Poh-Poh has one that's blue with blueberries on the lining, and Elizabeth's is red with peaches. (There's also a yellow bag, but I can't remember what's on the lining fabric.) But even the floral fabric on the outside is different for each because, like the seat belt, it's also reclaimed from somewhere.

The Squirrel on My Back

I was examining Z's back one afternoon, looking at the fine hairs and noticing that she has a whorl of hair right in the middle – kind of like the one on her forehead, or the two on BB's. So I became curious as to whether or not BB has a hair whorl on her back too, which she does. (Drew does not; G's is not so apparent.) Anyway I had been referring to it as a "swirl", and in her excitement at being examined, BB said, "Daddy, Daddy, look at the squirrel on my back." Love it!

Happy Mother's Day!

How Did You Celebrate...?

Yesterday was Drop Spaghetti on the Floor Day, did you hear? The girls did us proud. Z started off the festivities with an entire bowl of macaroni and cheese. Not spaghetti, but she's a young grasshopper. Later, things got wild and crazy when G dropped the taste sample of fresh pasta and some complicated tomato sauce (of roasted red pepper and pine nuts) at Williams-Sonoma; and then we as a family proceeded to trail pasta and sauce throughout the entire store, at one point, requiring the assistance of one of the sales associates to help us in the clean up. Finally, at dinner, Z, still in the beginning stages of spoon mastery but ever a quick learner, liberally sprinkled a spaghetti and (simpler: roasted garlic) red sauce all over the (pergo) floor at home.

Powell Gardens

Yesterday we took advantage of Nat. Public Gardens Day to get into Powell Gardens for free. Though still early in the season, I would guess, there were quite a few plants already in full bloom.

There was a fantastic orchid (and fern) exhibit in the main building,

of which the girls were more interested in the sprinkler just outside. G said it was just like rain, but with the less than desirable weather, I wasn't about to let them go near it.

A Japanese primula, which looks like it does really well in wet areas, comes in a variety of colors;

some sort of large peony – love the paper-like petals;

Drew had those purple flowers (that BB's blocking) growing in the front yard of the old house, but I thought it was interesting how they grew (really well) in the crevices of the rock wall like that;

this one did not have a label to it;

a field of chives in the edible garden section;

an apple sculpture heralding visitors to the edible garden, where there were also immature strawberries, blueberries, blackberry bushes, grapevines, apples, and a lot more that we didn't see (because it was getting rather windy-cold miserable);

and some cute button-like flower that no one seemed to know the name of. Anyway I ended up getting a membership so you'll most likely see a lot more flower pictures as the growing season progresses. I want to see their water lilies in particular.