Photo Alert: One of B, One of Charlie

Charlie

B with a new Dragon puppet from Sandy

MArci came over the other day to visit. While I was

in the family room talking to her, B was in the other room

"decorating" the coffee table. I though she was

taking apart some flowers I had in a vase. No such luck.

Crayons were her decoration of choice.

Here is a close-up of her handy work.

Winter Salad with Pomegranate, Fennel, Orange, Grapefruit and Fennel

Yesterday, my sister, niece Jeana (or Jeanie as B calls her) and Cathie P came to visit us. Mike made homemade pizza and I made this great salad. I made it at Christmas. But this time, inspired by our favorite lunch spot, The Movable Feast, I added fennel and grapefruit. I made the salad dressing ahead of time and let half a bulb of thinly sliced fennel stew in the dressing a bit. Then I added lettuce (just a mix of what I had on hand) a supremed grapefruit and orange, then the rest of the ingredients listed. It is not a quick salad to make, but it tastes so good. The original recipe is from Health magazine. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture.


Ingredients:

1/2 fennel bulb
5 clementines or 2 navel oranges (I used 1 grapefruit, 1 orange supremed, with the remains squeezed)
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
5 cups winter salad greens (such as baby spinach, romaine, and endive)
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds (about 1 pomegranate)
1/4 cup pistachios
1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled goat cheese

Preparation

1. Segment 2 clementines or 1 navel orange, and set aside. Juice the remaining citrus fruit. (You should have about 1/3 cup juice.)

2. Whisk together juice, vinegar, and honey in a serving bowl. Pour oil in slowly, whisking until well-combined. Add salad greens to bowl, and toss gently to combine.

3. Divide salad among 4 plates, and sprinkle evenly with pomegranate seeds, pistachios, and goat cheese. Top with reserved citrus segments. Serve. I tossed the whole thing together.)

James Street Rehab

Yes, I mean our house. It is in need of some TLC. So, a new front porch, new siding, chimney work and a bath redo is on deck. We forgot to take a pre-start photo, but here are a couple of pictures.

They took of the old front porch. The new
porch will span the whole front of the house, with
a slight wrap around by the screen porch.

And they are taking off the screen porch. It is
rotting. We aren't replacing it, because eventually
(hopefully in 5 years or so) we will put a master
suite in it's place.

I will do updates as work progresses.

Some New Pictures of B and Charlie

Here are some new pictures. Some B took.

B took a photo of the inside of her kaleidoscope.

Charlie, wearing a beautiful hat, hand knit
by Cathie P.

Sisters chilling on Charlie's playmat.

B wants to hold Charlie all the time. And
carry her around too.

B really loves her sister.

Just A Couple Photos

Here are a couple of pictures. I need to take more, but really, all Charlie does is eat, sleep and poop. Not so exciting.

My sleepy girls.

My other sleepy girl, Isabel.

Today was Charlie's first day out of the house.

Isn't the fleece jumper cute? Aunt Lee bought it

for her.

New Pics of Charlie

1/8/10

1/9/10

Charlie's eyes are surprisingly grey. Cathie P.

made this cute little gown.

Another Great Giveaway At Grosgrain!

Check out Grosgrain for the Magpie Lovely $50 Gift Card GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!! Magpie has some cute and unique things. I like this:

Charlotte Reese Bosak aka Charlie's Arrival at Home

This is also about Charlie's birth, so if that seems icky to you (and I was there, it was a bit icky, but also cool) stop reading right now.

Wednesday (and a couple of days overdue), I went to the midwife and had her check my dilation, I was 3-4 centimeters. She helped things a long with a membrane stripping, and asked if I wanted to make an appointment with an acupuncturist to get things moving - you know, in case the fear of taking care of another kid was holding the baby up - something that couldn't possibly be true, by, the way. Anyway, she assured me that if Charlie wasn't ready the membrane stripping and acupuncture wouldn't make a difference.

Well, let's just say, I never make it to the acupuncturist that afternoon at 3. Labor started a bit before 1:30. Nothing concrete enough to know this was the big one. Around 1:30 things were becoming more consistent, and I started timing the length and frequency. I called Mike around 2, and said he might want to come home fairly soon, in case these contractions were the real deal. So, he was freaking when he got home, cleaning and making the bed up with the birthing sheets, and blowing up the birthing pool. I helped out, getting the stuff on our checklist, extra towels, thermometer, a whole sheet. B was really good, playing and not being her usual clingy self. She actually saw me have a couple of contractions (I tried to leave the room as not to scare her) and she told me to stop having them. She didn't like seeing me in pain. Around 4ish, the contractions got harder and came lots closer together, like jumped from 9 minutes apart to 5 and 6 minutes apart. I was not able to sit down at all. It was easier to continue walking around and leaning on the buffet when they hit. It was then, my sister called and I mentioned that drugs sounded a little good. I actually don't remember labor being too painful. With B, I had a longer, back labor, so maybe that spread the pain around instead of concentrating in one place.

Lost my "plug", probably the ickiest part, besides the placenta. Talked to the midwife again and told her things were progressing quickly. Like, by 5ish, the contractions were 4 minutes apart. Karen, the nurse, showed up around 5:45, 6 o'clock. Mike was extremely relived because he thought for sure he was delivering Charlie. And needless to say, Mike is a guy who stays topside of any icky birthing stuff. I was dilated to 8. B went over to Marci's house after 6 (thank you very much!!!!) And maybe it was the nurse showing up, I don't know, but the contractions dropped to less than 2 minutes apart. Karen got all her stuff, thinking she too was making the delivery.

Mike got the tub filled up - both of us very happy about the new hot walter heater they finished installing at 2 the same day. And by the time my midwife arrived, I was ready to hit the water. I was starting to feel like to was time to push. I got in the tub, tried to get comfortable, and it all hit the fan sort to speak. I do have to say, while it still hurt, the tub made everything feel better. The water helped support my stomach, which about reached my knees while standing up. So, less than 6 hours after labor began, at 7:19pm, I had Charlie. Pulled her out myself. And would you believe, I never thought to see if she was a boy or girl? They had to remind me!!! So, I was elated she was girl, of course. I cut the cord myself, sat for awhile in the tub, then got out for the placenta part. Mike held Charlie, while she screamed each time she heard my voice. They eventually weighed and measured her, 8 lbs, 4 ozs and 21 inches long.

I don't know if it comes through or not, but this was the ideal birth for me. Everything was down on my terms and own time. I think labor moved quickly because I walked around the house, doing stuff, helping the baby move down. I was relaxed at home, no mad rush to the hospital. Mike was able to give me all the water I needed, and I pushed how and when I wanted to. Not big, long, hold your breath pushes, but, shorter, harder, and truly easier on me and the baby pushes. I really liked no one barking orders at me, or worrying about questioning everything. Charlie wasn't poked or prodded by strangers right after her birth, nor taken away from me for any reason. And for some reason, I am not sore at all, or bleeding very much. It was nice waking up in my own bed, with my own bathroom and my own food. I totally recommend home birth to anyone who can do it.

We didn't take a lot of pictures. Partly because there wasn't a lot of time, partly because we forgot, and seriously, who wants to see my naked butt?

The tub.

***KIND OF GROSS PHOTO*** NO NAKEDNESS THOUGH****

Charlie right after she was born. That is a towel

under the water, not body parts.

Big sister B. Marci said B squealed when she

found out Charlie was a girl.

My little T-rex with her little sister.

I Made These! Burp Clothes

So, I think I have said it before, but I am a tad bored. I kept myself busy making and doing before Christmas, and afterwards, I had a bit of a letdown. I came across these over at the Crap I've Made blog (look through the list for burp clothes). When I went to get our knives and scissors sharpened at Joann's last night, I picked up some material to make them. (I already had flat cloth diapers at home - already washed and ready to be used as plain burp clothes.) I picked the grey and black fabric to match my tote bag and clutch. Plus, it doesn't look like it would offend either gender.

I did the first one, just like Char. It went

pretty well. (I pre-washed and dried the material.)

Then I went crazy and tried the material

down the middle, just like this blog

(sans the ribbon).

I made a total of 2 each kind. I will probably make one more tomorrow. They really were fairly easy. The pattern of the fabric made it even easier for a non-sewer like me to hem and cute pretty straight. The only problem I had was the diapers themselves are wonky. They aren't square, and the middle panel is crooked on most of them. Other than that and some machine trouble (Hate that machine. I really will buy a new one - someday.) they were pretty easy.

I took these pictures after the sun went down.

Don't you love CFL bulbs? They are so yellow.

A also bought a yard and a half of this really cute dinosaur fabric. I don't know what I will do with it, maybe a cute dress for my own little t-rex?

Sleepy B

With all the holiday festivities and Mike being home, B is terribly out of whack with her sleeping. Late nights and waking up early have stuck her back into a napping routine. However, she falls asleep after 4, and then is up past 10. A vicious cycle. We need to figure a way out of it.

THe thing is, she doesn't ask to nap, she just falls asleep. Usually on the couch, but today, at the kitchen island.

I documented the potty seat incident, so shall I document this.

OK, this is seriously sweet.

Apparently, B isn't the only tired one on the house.

Took these yesterday afternoon.

This is from this afternoon. Are we the worst parents ever?

By the way, she woke up and is now crying.

Poor thing is still tired and probably has a sore neck.

Random Photos from December and January

Here they are:

Mike and B dancing to the music

from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame concert.

B took this of cousins Jess (l) and Jeana (rt).

Self portrait.

Another B picture. Dino pizza.

B in her new dino jammies. Compliments of the Olesen's.

Of course, this would be the cat Annie would

sit next to, a fake one. She would never get this close

to Isabel or Nikita.

How cute is this hat? Lee found it for B for Christmas.

It as matching mitts too. Sorry the pictures

are so bad. I took them with my iPhone, sneakily.

B did not want her photo taken. But isn't she cute?

I Am So Talented - NOT!

I am suffering from an after Christmas creative rut. I did so much stuff before the holiday, that I am at a loss now that there is nothing to do but wait to have a baby. I had some fabric lying around - stuff I had planned to use to make the baby some PJs, but got into card making instead - so I thought, I'll make Charlie and B matching PJ pants.

Since I was going to use a thermo knit, I thought I would try out the serger my cousin Barb gave me. I haven't used it much, mostly because I don't have a clue how to use it properly. I can thread it! Which actually intimidates most people, but, the sewing part is a bit of a mystery to me. Instead of looking at a book and figuring out the right way of serging, I just went balls out, not knowing what is right and wrong. I serged up the side and hem for Charlie's pants, then used my regular sewing machine to finish the hem and waistband. They turned out alright.

The sides are a bit wonky, I think that has to do with the stretch factor and me not knowing how to deal with it. B's pants on the other hand, WAY bad. Bad pattern to start - the rise would fit me! One leg shorter than the other. Bad, Bad, very BAD! I really want to try again, I have the itch to sew something, but I don't think I have enough of the penguin material left. What I really need to do, it get my Serge U book out and practice with my stretchy scraps.

Instead, I went back to card making. My sister bought me this cool L Letterpress machine for Christmas. I bought some more inks and plates last week. I figure I can make my own baby announcement cards - you know - in my spare time. I read some tips on the internet, and set to work. Man, the machine is cool. The plates offered by Lifestyle Crafts are limited (and expensive) but it is a lot of fun to do. I also found a place that does custom plates - Boxcar Press. That is something I would like to do for our Christmas cards next year, since I always have issues with the insides of my cards.

Anyway, I started playing around. Got some ideas from the Lifestyle Crafts blog as well as from Archivers. And I have a mock up of the birth announcement. I will try to get some of it done before Charlie arrives. (Seriously, this kid has taken a hold and doesn't want to come out. It must not be a fan of cold weather. The temperature on James Street is a balmy 10 degrees.) Below are some ideas Archivers had posted:

Below is a letterpress print I did, then cut out with a die I bought for Valentines Day. (I forgot to mention, the L Letterpress also acts as a die cutter) Can you imagine? I didn't buy any red or pink ink. Do I dare go back to get it? I could use another press plate.

The object to the right is the die cutter.

I would like to see if I can find the letterpress paper a bit cheaper. The packs that are made for the L Letterpress are $6.99 a pack - and the square cards I bought for my announcements aren't even perfectly square! So, I am on the hunt for paper.

Doesn't my sister buy the coolest stuff? OK, off to print some more, or maybe sew. I don't know. I am bored, don't want to go outside (Sunday paper is still on the driveway) and I don't want to clean.