Time to unwrap the gifts!

Toddler crayons rock! (From Grandma Lorie, as is the Stud Muffin shirt.)

New books are also awesome. As Damian unwrapped each one he made Michael read it to him.

Damian received a ton of gifts from family, so therefor there are a ton of pictures. Michael and I bought him a Tonka firetruck which has been zooming around the house for the past few days, along with the wooden helicopter from his Aunt Lydia. He also received an awesome pedal powered tractor from his Grandma Lorie, Great Grandma Mason and Great Uncle Stan. As if I already couldn’t keep up with him, now he has wheels! I think he is in love. They sent him the John Deer shirt to complete the look. (Now if we could just get a plow and tiller for it, I would never need to do yard work again…) Ivy received clothes and a huge singing plush hound (it sings “Blue Christmas”.) I have a video of her with said dog which I have yet to upload. We also received a wooden advent calender, a duvet cover and a camera (thank you Uncle Stan!) and a jigsaw. Come warmer weather and a little practice, Michael and I are going to try our hands at some simple wooden children’s toys. I am really excited about that.

Christmas was lovely and I am certain Damian was completely thrilled with his gifts (as he is still playing with them all.) The day had a perfect wrap up for him too, hot chocolate and a snuggle in his new red bathrobe (made with love by yours truly, with a pattern created by my mother-in-law.) I could make a tradition out of just that you know…

“For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.”
- – Ralph Waldo Emerson

We spent today at our friends’ Thanksgiving gathering. Peter and Andrea’s home is always so welcoming. Andrea’s sister-in-law, Laurie, surprised us with a couple of gifts too, a really soft adorable turtle plush for Ivy and a Kalanchöe, a tropical succulent, this one has orange flowers. I admit, I am a sucker for new plants.

Damian behaved as well as any 17 month old toddler can. He loved the food too, I was pleasantly surprised that he ate the turkey since I have the hardest time getting him to eat any form of protein, animal or plant. He stuffed himself silly (very silly indeed) with it in fact. The only problem with going elsewhere for Thanksgiving is you don’t have leftovers, however my turkeys would not have been nearly as good anyways. Ivy even left me some room for seconds!

So what is your preference? Barbecued turkey or oven baked? They had both! And tons of sides of course, yams, mashed potatoes, dressing, gravy, cranberry sauces, rolls… Everything was delicious, but more then that, the company was wonderful. (I think it is impossible to feel like an outsider with the Parrish family…) I have been spending an exuberant amount of time recently feeling rather nostalgic about my mother’s side of the family (with whom I spent nearly all of my childhood holidays with.) Andrea’s family reminds me of them quite a bit so it was extra special and a bit therapeutic to spend Thanksgiving with them.

I hope you had as lovely a day as we did and have hearts as full of gratitude as we do. Happy Thanksgiving!

The night before Halloween we carved the pumpkin that Damian picked out at Harvest House in September. Michael drew its face under Damian’s close supervision.

Then Damian watched me scoop out the pumpkin guts. As those present at his birthday party already know, Damian is not a big fan of getting goopy, so he mostly watched. He did keep trying to put the guts back in the pumpkin though as I put them in the compost bowl. Future doctor maybe? Innards are suppose to stay inside you donchaknow!

Then he tried his hand at carving. Since Damian is not allowed to have a knife he just decided to chop at the pumpkin. Didn’t work out so well, so he watched me do that too while he colored on the pieces I cut out with his crayons.

And here is our Jack-O-Lantern as well as a pile of pumpkin donuts I made the same night. Pumpkin carving and pumpkin donuts belong together in my opinion (even if deep frying will always scare me a bit, I’d rather not have to use my fire extinguisher you know.) I used this recipe for the donuts which turned out really well, though I did not use buttermilk and skipped the whole donut shaping bit.

I had some last minute problems with Damian’s costume (I now realize why my mom started my brother and mine a month early!) but we did have a fall back plan. Last year Mom sent him a Winny the Pooh suit which was size 18 months. It was huge on Damian then and since I made him a Green Man costume, I tucked the Pooh suit it in our Halloween storage box. It fit him perfectly this year and he loved zooming around the house in it. And he was really zooming, we almost had liftoff a few times, granted his Sweet Tarts thefts probably partially accounted for said zooming and also his somewhat delayed bedtime.

All told we had about 30 or so trick-or-treaters. I loved seeing all the cute costumes. Almost all the activity tapered off my 21:00 and we turned off our lights at 22:00. Admittedly, I was annoyed at anyone who showed up after then banging on the door. They were all older teenagers and almost all of them were not even in costume! Luckily no tricks were inflicted on us because of my refusal to give out candy after we had put everything away. And luckily for them they didn’t wake up Damian…

Other then that nuisance though, it was a great night and I am looking forward to next year already. Michael and I have some fun ideas for how to expand our decorations into the yard. Mmmm aliens…

Now to go poke through the extra candy for a KitKat…

I made out like a bandit this Winter Solstice! I got…

Wooden blocks from my Great Aunt Ruth and cousin Becka. The blocks are so awesome, I strategically place them so that Mommy steps on them, mwahahahaha! I push my wagon around the floor too! When I unwrapped it, it looked like this!

I got a musical riding horse from Grandma and Great Grandma Mason (Mommy’s family) and lots of cute books and a crawling Pooh bear. The box was pretty fun too! They also gave me the green PJs that I am wearing in some of these photos.

I got a pull along fabric and wood crocodile (which Mommy needs to get a better photo of) from Grandpa Tolman (Mommy’s father.) I crawl around trailing it behind me and then turn around and maul it while growling. I am soooo fearsome! Grandpa Tolman also got me some long sleeve onsies (I am wearing one in this photo,) sneakers and a baby book about the Solstice! Mommy is going to read it to me tonight.

And as if I wasn’t spoiled enough, Uncle Justin and Aunt Heather got me:

Another thing which allows me to unleash my inner geek! Daddy especially loves this one (he had to explain it to Mommy…)

I had a wonderful Solstice and I hope you did too. Thank you for all the gifts, I am really enjoying them. Mommy and Daddy took a video of me unwrapping them which will be online soon.

Baby hugs! (That’s my Grandma Stewart.)

More Photos Here!

Blessed Lughnasadh!

Lughnasadh is going to be quite different for us this year since we now have Damian! His grandpa Tolman will be here to visit. I want to make an effort to celebrate all the sabbats with Damian but this one might wait till next weekend. I like that cross-quarter days are flexible like that! Heck my solstices and equinoxes kind of are too.

This year I am going to share my seasonal feast recipes with you. All my recipes are all very loose and leave a lot of room for personal taste. I rarely follow instructions except if I am making bread… even then I tend to switch to whole wheat.

Speaking of whole wheat, Lughnasadh celebrates the grain harvest so how about we start with a bread recipe:

BREAD: Baguette

• 1 tbsp active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 cup bread flour
• 3 cups whole wheat flour

- In a large bowl combine honey and warm water, stir in yeast. Let sit for 10 minutes, until foamy.
- Add salt. Add flours 1 cup at a time until dough starts to come together. Turn out onto a floured surface and kneed in the rest of the flour until smooth (about 10 minutes.)
- Place dough in an oiled and turn to coat the surface. Cover and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours.
- Punch down and form into long slender loaf (approx 21 inches long and 3 inches wide.) Place diagonally on a lightly greased large baking sheet and let rise uncovered for about 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400 F.
- After loaf has risen make 3-6 diagonal slashes on it with sharp knife and lightly brush top with cool water. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden. Cool on wire rack. (If you can wait long enough for it to cool, warm baguette smothered in fresh butter or preserves, yum!)

APPETIZER: Bruschetta
There is about a dozen different ways to make this, but this is the way I grew up with, more or less. The ingredients are very flexible and can (and should!) be done to taste.

• 6 tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 2 to 4 cloves garlic, minced (I use a garlic press)
• a handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 baguette (homemade)
• Olive oil

- Toss together tomatoes, garlic and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside to allow flavors to meld.
- Slice baguette into 1-inch pieces and toast. Drizzle with olive oil. (Alternately you can cut the garlic cloves in half and rub them against the toast before drizzling.)
- Top with tomato mixture and serve.

MAIN DISH: Grilled Chicken Salad

• 4 grilled chicken breasts, sliced
• Homemade raspberry vinaigrette
• 1 head lettuce, torn up – I like red leaf or romaine
• 2 cups spinach, torn up
• 2 cucumbers, seeded and diced
• 1 cup corn
• 2 or 3 or 4 tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 cup mozzarella, cubed or shredded

- Make vinaigrette. Mine uses about 8 tbsp olive oil, 3 tbsp raspberry vinegar, 1 to 2 tbsp local honey, 1 tsp dry mustard, 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice, 2 cloves garlic, salt and pepper. Still all that in a jar and shake. Viola vinaigrette. (I make my own raspberry vinegar but I have seen it in some stores, you could use any fruit vinegar, or apple cider vinegar, or balsamic for that matter.)
- Marinate chicken breasts in some vinaigrette for 30 minutes to and hour. Or you can be inpatient like me and stick some vinaigrette and the chicken in a ziplock and hit with with a rolling pin a few times until it flattens. Force marination.
- Grill chicken and slice. I like it left warm but you could certainly chill if that is your thing.
- In a large bowl toss together your chicken and your other ingredients with more vinaigrette. (Alternately, you could layer it lettuce, spinach, cucumbers, corn, tomatoes, cheese.)

DESSERT: Grilled Peaches

• Peaches, 1 per person
• 2 tsp brown sugar per peach
• Melted butter, enough to brush your peaches with
• Vanilla ice cream

- Cut peaches along the seam all the way around and twist off the pit. Brush cut sides with butter.
- Cook, cut side down, on a hot grill until fruit has grill marks, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Brush tops with butter, turn over, and move to indirect heat. Put 1 tsp of sugar in each peach where the pit was.
- Cover grill and cook until sugar is melted and fruit is tender, 5 to 10 minutes.
- Serve hot with vanilla ice cream.

If you celebrate Lughnasadh what do you intend of filling your family’s bellies with? Even if you don’t what are you having for dinner? Some local foods too I hope!

From left to right: Kim, Greg, Ariella, Lydia and Ginanne holding her daughter Emily. (Michael, Jordan and I are off frame.)

On Sunday and Monday, Michael and I were up at my in-laws home in Elk, WA. Ginanne, Jordan and their daughter Emily, also came up, though they camped out down in the apple orchard. After they had set up their camp, we all decided to go down to the orchard and have a campfire. We roasted weenies and made smores (mmm smores!)

I really love Greg and Kim’s property, which is in a pretty densely wooded area near Mount Spokane State Park. It use to mostly border the park but the state recently sold some land to some developers who are changing it into a rural housing development (grrr.) Greg and Kim have a natural pond right by their orchard in the Spring. It is more of a swampy wetland for the rest of the year, but even then, I love all the rushes and wildlife in it (except the gigantic bloodsucking insects.) The orchard is nice too, though it was pretty much abandoned to the forest a long time ago, the apples are of an heirloom variety I believe.

On Monday morning, after gobs of pancakes and strawberries, Kim, Michael and I went for a hike around the property and out onto the land that is being developed. The people developing it have logged it pretty heavily. The lots are going to be quite large (6 or so acres) and the land is currently going for $6000 an acre. It is kind of sad to see the natural area destroyed, especially since it was state park land and I did not know the state could sell land they bought with my tax dollars.

It was really windy on our hike but also really refreshing. I love getting out an walking in nature and walking is really good for me right now, though if I try to go to fast I get Braxton Hicks contractions! I especially love all the wildflowers around this time of year up around Greg and Kim’s property. I’ll be posting several photos of them in my photoblog over the next few days.

After we got back from our hike and swapped photos (some of the photos in my gallery were taken by Kim, they are the ones with date stamps) we had burgers and potato salad and watched Pirates 3 (I honestly don’t get what all the hype is regarding those movies, maybe they just aren’t my thing though.) We normally visit the grave of a soldier at the Elk cemetery on Memorial Day, but Michael and I were so tired by that point that we just came home. (I have a lot more photos from the weekend, especially our hike, here.)

I had my ultrasound today, the baby is head down now and all is well. I am also now at the point I can go into labor without him being considered premature. Only 20 days till my due date!

(Sunrise in dowtown Spokane.)

The Lupercalia is an ancient, possibly pre-Roman pastoral festival, observed from February 13 to February 15 to avert evil spirits and purify the city, and increase good health and fertility. Perhaps this is where some aspects of Valentines came from, though the history of big holidays is certainly a muddled one. Either way I hope everyone has a wonderful day, I think my Aunt Ruth described Valentines Day best:

Valentine’s Day is not about chocolates and jewelry and special dinners and cards, but a day to think about true love and commitment no matter what our circumstances are.

Other then blogging, Michael and I have been pretty busy lately. Every Wednesday we have our Bradley classes and we are also working on reorganizing our apartment. Mostly I am focusing on tidying up and this weekend we are going to work on moving some furniture around (before anyone says it, yes I will be careful.) I am really grateful for how well Michael and I work together as a team, I know a lot of relationships do not have that good of communication.

Cleaning and rearranging aside, I have spent quite a bit of time in meditation and prayer recently. I know a lot of Pagans who do not pray, or rather, do not use the word “pray”. Perhaps it is too strong of a word implying that we are merely pawns, rather then players in our own fate. for me prayer is a way of connecting with an external divine source (rather then the internal one I access though meditation) to become empowered.

But yes, I have been praying for two people, and my cat too (who is starting to do better, thank you for all the advice!) I am praying for my friend’s daughters has developed PTSD and she is having an incredibly hard time cooping with the events that caused it. She is now back home but it will be a long road to balance for her. I am also praying for my Uncle Stephen who has been diagnosed with something called Horton’s Disease, which sounds infinitely more painful then my simple migraines. Part of me sees events in life such as these as a test of faith, however that does not make it any easier to see those you love in pain.

I should probably get back to cleaning now. I need to reorganized the storage space under the stairs. Who knows that lurks under there…

Someone held a door open for me today and reminded me it was Random Acts of Kindness Week today. Which was very funny and cute.

This past weekend was fun, lots of kindness! We went to a discussion group at Shannon’s on Friday night and had a vegetarian potluck. I have never had miso soup before, or tofu that I considered edible for that matter… I love this group because we just talk with no set topic, which is really nice sometimes.

On Saturday night we went over to Andrea’s for a “Medieval” movie night. We watched “Robin Hood – Men in Tights” and “The Reduced Shakespeare Company” (which was a really great comedy theater piece of three men reducing all 37 of Shakespeare’s works into one hour.)

Sunday… we didn’t do much. It was very windy, parts of Spokane declared a state of emergency because of blowing snow drifts. I feel for anyone who lives in the West Plains… We are on the South Hill though and other then the wind, the roads are (finally) clear. We went grocery shopping. The overabundance of bad weather lately was evident at Safeway though. You know the weather has been bad for way to long when the grocery store starts running out of food…. It makes you appreciate local food so much more too. Safeway’s produce department (and quite a bit of the rest of the store) is filled with signs that says “Out of Stock Due to Weather”. I think all the mountain passes are open again today though, so we are no longer cut off from the world.

They did have strawberries though, ya! They were reasonably cheap too for Winter, because of Valentines day.

I know a lot of people don’t do Valentines day because of “rampant consumerism” or whatnot, but I am looking forward to it. I got Michael a little something and I am really looking forward to his reaction to it. I ordered it today though so it might not be here by Thursday though…

I think it is important to be in touch with your relationship and the needs of your spouse all year around, but I still like Valentines because it is a little reminder of that in the middle of the most depressing month ever, of the importance of love. (Okay, before someone says it, I know, technically January has more suicides then February worldwide but the people who found that out have obviously never been delayed in the subway in Paris in February because another person jumped in the tracks…) February 14th is also Singles Awareness Day isn’t it? So even a holiday for the party poopers pessimists…

I suppose it is 2008 now isn’t it?

Tomorrow I have my second ultrasound, I am excited. Now that is a way to bring in the new year! On new years eve though Michael and I stayed home for New Years, ate fruit tart and watched Firefly. It was cozy, fun and relaxed (and mmmm fruit tart!) I made Michael his first Mimosa too.

I didn’t make any resolutions, I tend to make them as it occurs to me that I need to change, not just at one time of year. Besides I am so unmotivated in January I know I would totally break them! Hehe.

Speaking of which, I think I am going to take a nap.
How was your new year?

I just wanted to wish everyone a blessed Winter Solstice. I am completely rejoicing with the thought of the returning sun. Longer days, yes!

Also Merry Christmas, Kwanzaa, Yule, Hanakhah, slightly belated Saturnalia and everything else I am missing! I hope you all find the brightest joy in this season of so many holidays!

What do you do when you are tired but can’t sleep? The herb Skullcap works but I am trying to keep the herbal remedies to a minimum during my pregnancy.

While not quite as cuddly as curling up with a paper book, I read ebooks. Staring at the computer screen wears my eyes out more somehow. I was reading “Confessions of an English Opium-Eater” by Thomas De Quincey (why didn’t we get to read stuff like this in school?) and I thought I would pause and blog for a few minutes. Was the author actually on opium when he wrote it?

I find a lot of my free ebooks on Project Gutenberg since all their books are public domain, which means they are almost all old, but I like the classics.

Anyhow tiredness just struck me so I think I am off to bed.

How is everyone? Any big plans for the Winter Solstice/Christmas?

This is my sister-in-law with one of her cats, Calico, at Michael’s family Thanksgiving gathering yesterday.
I know I said I probably would pass on posting today but I have a surprising amount of energy.

(A local electronics store just before opening today, the line went all the way down the block!)

People seem so eager to complain this time of year. Too much rampant consumerism, too much stress, too much Christmas music, too much cold, too much food… We have the personal choice to not indulge in these things you know? Why does it matter to you if other people if people like standing in line in the wee hours of the morning the day after Thanksgiving to shop? Let them have their fun. People seem so keen to dwell on the negative traits in others rather then encouraging the positive ones.

I admit I fall into this trend too, it is hard to stay optimistic. It is so easy to criticize. Have you ever tried to go just an hour without using the words “no” “can’t” “never” and other negatives? It is really tiring. I’ve been trying it out today, I’m trying to avoid using negatives in this post even.

I adore the Holiday season. I love the food, I love the carols, I love the decorations and getting creative with them, I love gifting, I love the gatherings, I love the cold and the snow. I am not too keen on the crazy shopping conditions but I can avoid them and shop online if I must. Besides when you hit the store at 10pm, as Michael and I seem to frequently do, chances are you are going to find short lines.

Yes, maybe we should all try to remember the charitable spirit of Christmas, but if you really want that giant inflatable snow globe for your lawn, go for it, especially if it makes you or those you love smile. I really do hope you all enjoy this time of year and all the years holidays. Happiness feels infinitely better then bitter sadness.

So I haven’t posted a real update in a little over a week. I’ve been busy pulling out holiday decorations and working. Best advice I can give for long term Christmas decor? Buy led light strings. They last way way waaay longer and look cooler (in my opinion.) They also cost about the same as normal light strings.

I have had Deep Blue Something’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” stuck in my head for most of the day… Was that based a movie? Was it any good?

Christmas is the busiest season for us candlemakers you know? We are working hard to save up money for the baby. All those baby items add up! Meh, damn car seats why can’t I just go Britney and sit ‘em on my lap. (Joking! I am joking!) I don’t like asking for stuff, but when in need… I am just starting to put together a baby registry on Amazon (which can be found here.)It is mostly neuter stuff since we probably won’t be announcing the baby’s sex, I may not even find out. There are so few real surprises left in the world. Christmas gifts are lovely and I adore them so much but please, if you want to get Michael and I something this year, choose an item off the registry. I would also adore any gently used baby item, I am so cool with used.

We had a first snow last night they said we would have accumulation but it hardly stuck, grrr! Still, snow! I loved snow. We are expecting 1 to 3 inches tonight, hopefully that will be accurate. It just doesn’t feel like the holiday season without some white stuff, ya know?

Ack! I am already talking holidays, we aren’t even to Thanksgiving here yet. No more of such talk till Friday then. No Saturday, I will be dead Friday. More on that later. We are spending Thanksgiving at Michael’s parents, I am bringing basil tomato polenta (so they will either love or hate me for that?) I love spending Thanksgiving up there, awesome company and awesome food. Pregnancy, the only time I can eat 2600 calories a day and not feel as guilty as everyone else, hehe!

But then comes Friday and I can do the overdose of caffeen anymore. Friday is Black Friday here in the USA, the busiest shopping day of the year when all the stores open super early with super sales. It is madness and I am working it. I have to be in the parking lot an hour earlier then usual opening managing parking in the downtown shopping district. Noooo! The extra money will be good though.

So maybe don’t expect too much Christmas cheer on Friday.
And maybe expect a Feline Friday on Saturday?

I’ll survive, I’m sure.
I think…

I just tried to use the tv remote to turn up YouTube on my laptop…
My uterus is absorbing my brain!