Getting the Big Mo

I bounced back rather quickly from the cold, thankfully--and Mark is feeling better, finally--and have actually been accomplishing things. In the last week, I've applied to be a school volunteer (has to be done on-site, during school hours, so it's logistically harder than it sounds), scrubbed grout, washed carpets and a bunch of clothing, made a number of washcloths (stockpiling Christmas presents, if you can believe it!), went through Rosina's warm-weather clothing (may need shorts, has enough tops for three kids), went to a great Korean supermarket (our first HMart, I am in love) and a not-so-great international festival, trimmed Rosina's bangs, and finally mailed postcards about ACA to, as I refer to them, our dillweed senators.

And I heard this on the radio the other day. This will always be a good thing. How hot was he back then ?! Even with the cigarette!

Nostalgia

This makes me feel really old, but is also super awesome (stay tuned around 3:15):

Way to rock the Weber grill!

We came home an hour early today due to possible tornadoes, so now I'm kind of killing time with the kid. (Luckily she is over the drama that ensued when the television was turned off.). I think we will bake some bread! I usually go the no-knead route, but recently heard about a three-hour no-knead version--fantastic if it does work. I should really also clean the bathrooms...

Too short!

All clear on the pacifier front!  Rosina has asked for it at night and before her nap, but we just keep telling her that they are gone, having been "sent to Baby Maddie". It appears to be holding her off...

Inspired by the prankish theft of a small baby dinosaur model from the state history museum last week (it has been returned, and I think the thieves are charged with grand larceny! Some prank), we decided to drop by and visit the dinosaur exhibits ourselves today. Rosina was stoked, of course, but still gets a bit freaked out because they're so big... We had lunch in the lower-level, and I must say that the fried-green-tomato BLT with Brie is not as good as the Brie grilled cheese with apple chutney I had there last winter. That thing was perfection...

We had some old friends over for dinner last night, which was really nice. The weather was perfect for hanging out on the screened-in porch after dinner. Also, I was pleasantly reminded how good vanilla ice cream is with fruit. Mango, peaches, cherries... Just wow. 

My dance teacher is only teaching beginners this session, so tomorrow will be basically the first Monday in years I won't either go to class or feel guilty for missing it. :) Now that my plantar fasciitis is better-behaved, I should be able to start practicing again. I was planning on taking bellydance in September--which I haven't taken in a while!--so I'll need to brush up on my hip shimmies. Also, maybe I can figure out how to coordinate a camel, once my shoulder stops doing its thing. My PT appointment tomorrow is actually at a new dancer clinic my PT and an ex-dancer orthopedist have started. I should be able to get some recommendations for my feet--and how not to flare them up!--and maybe get some more advice for my neck/shoulder.

Very busy day tomorrow--art class, tree service, appointment, working!--so I'll sign off. I think I will need another weekend after tomorrow!

(More) Housekeeping

Today is apparently the day I try to catch up on things.  I am currently uploading more than 200 pictures to Rosina's Shutterfly site, and it seemed like a good time to get my ass in gear and update my freaking blog already.  Poor neglected 13-year-old blog... (My blog has made it to menarche and likes to slam doors and fantasize about...hmm, about whom would an almost 13-year-old fantasize these days?  Sadly, I probably fantasized about Kurt Cameron or something.  Uh, the singer from Ylvis with the floppy hair?  David Wright on the Mets is pretty hot as well.)

First thing:  I am going to swear.  This song totally fucking ROCKS.  Like, I can't even.  It saddens me that I specifically remember denigrating the White Stripes when they came out, assuming they could not play their instruments.  Um, evidence to the contrary, right here. 



I mean, WHAT WAS THAT.

Also, we have had some adventures.  We did indeed buy a new laptop--of course, it's taken me three months to actually put photos on it, so there you go... We had a nice visit from my mother, sister-in-law and nieces in early May, then met them and my brother at Sesame Place in late May.  We picked just the right time to go, as the temperatures were about 15 degrees below normal (wearing cardigans post-Memorial Day = heaven), and there was a soft-open for a whole new section of rides.  We then drove up to New York to visit my grandparents and spend more time with my brother's family.  Things did get old with my mother.  (Also, kind of seeing a divergence in parenting styles here:  my mother gave my then-16-month-old niece a timeout for biting.  Can a baby that young even understand that kind of thing?!  Ugh.)  But we survived.  I even managed to drive back alone with Rosina (over two days--there was a lovely visit with the squishy and adorable Maddie in between legs), since Mark had to fly home after a few days.

Once we returned, it was time for potty training boot camp.  We would've preferred it happen organically, but with her having already turned three, it probably wasn't going to happen on its own--plus she had to be ready in time for preschool in September.  It was a rough first week, with lots of accidents everywhere.  Just when I was beginning to doubt it would ever catch on, I had an elucidating conversation with Rosina (benefit of training late: your kids can tell you what's up):  we were talking about poop, as you do, and where different people and kids that she knew pooped.  When I asked her where she pooped, she said, "In my diaper!", tugging on her training pants.  That's when I realized that she thought training pants (actual Gerber ones, plus some underwear I tricked out with padding) were just a really ineffective diaper.  Eureka!  She went commando for the next three days, and finally figured it out! And the first week wasn't really a waste, as it got her really used to the ritual. (Including the reward M&Ms and stickers.) It hasn't been perfect--today she peed ALL OVER the bathroom floor because she timed it wrong--but that was the first real accident in a few weeks.  (She is still in a diaper at night and for her nap--she's a big sleeper--but we may be ready to eliminate the latter soon.) We did learn that we need to carry around her foam seat because she's scared to sit on a toilet without it (legitimately--she is still quite small), but I can deal with that.  Anyway, long story short, POTTY OUT, we are awesome, etc. 

Having to spend two weeks at home cleaning up pee was actually fairly convenient, as my old modern dance-acquired plantar fasciitis decided to act up.  It was really bad for about a week, and even now it's not great.  I think it was from wearing two different pairs of summer shoes that were both too big and had zero arch support.  Anyway, for the past month I've only been in sneakers equipped with surprisingly helpful Dr. Scholl's inserts, and I've been doing lots of stretching.  In other health news, I did actually get my act together and make some long-overdue doctor's appointments.  My new GP seems very nice, though I haven't spent much time with her yet.  My reproductive endocrinologist is really great--an actual published expert on PCOS, among other things--and we have a game plan going forward.  (I'm currently back on my old pill, Yasmin, as well as going on extended-release metformin since the regular stuff made me so sick for so long.  All of my bloodwork came back fine--even my testosterone levels were normal, which was unexpected--and I will have a follow-up in a few weeks, along with a gynecological surgeon to talk about possible surgical intervention.  The more I think about it, since I'm basically on hormone replacement anyway, perhaps a hysterectomy and/or oophorectomy would cause unnecessary side effects, and laporoscopic ablation/cyst-zapping would be more beneficial--plus I won't be housebound for six weeks. Jeez.) I also finally saw an orthopedist about my flared-up bulging disc.  I'm in PT right now, and the exercises do help a lot, but I still wake up stiff and sore every morning.  I just cannot get the hang of sleeping in a normal human position that doesn't result in numb arms or a very sore neck.  Still working on that.

Fiber news:  I did indeed start a fingering-weight cardigan, Zora, right around Rosina's birthday.  I've finished the back and started one of the fronts, but haven't worked on it in a bit--with the Yarn Harlot doing her own biking this year, I didn't even think about the Tour de Fleece until I heard on the radio that the Tour de France was starting.  So I'm back working on my pretty green Unplanned Peacock stuff (merino?).  The other things I've worked on in recent memory are a reknit pair of socks for Mark (huge gauge mistake in the ones I made him for Christmas), a few starfish washcloths...and the other day I converted a singleton sock into a new steel water bottle sleeve.  Yesterday I used some of the extra yarn to knit a new sock for my trashed sock blocker keychain sock.

Um, what else?  I'm making dinner--attempting baked lentil falafel tonight.  But in closing, look at this picture.

Nature's first green is gold

...Her hardest hue to hold. Look at me quoting Robert Frost, and it's not even a holiday or anything!  ;) Everything here has been covered in a yellow-green haze for the past few days, but it rained this evening, and is supposed to rain again tomorrow, then get really cold. I'm hoping all the rain and the cold front coming in will wash all the pine pollen out of the trees. Wishful thinking, I know, but the poem is called "Nothing Gold Can Stay". That said, I don't think there are pine pollen issues in New England...

I am enjoying some yogurt and an adult beverage after a very long day. Mark woke me up at about 12:30 last night because I was snoring, so I moved to the couch, where I woke up in considerable neck and shoulder pain, and very confused after a rather, um, vivid dream about a guy from my old neighborhood. Other than that we have a lot of mutual FB friends, I have NO IDEA where this came from. 

 

[FB sidebar: the annoying person I mentioned last week is ALL OVER my feed for some reason. I don't want to have to hide him/her--and honestly, we would all be better served if I just stayed off FB!  I do want to crowdsource some preschool options, but since my aura is apparently detrimental to the operation of Windows (I did get the old laptop from work today, but I'm not taking a lot of chances)--and I refuse to install FB on my phone, maybe I will just cool it for a while after tomorrow.]

I just made reservations for our anniversary dinner online. Welcome to the Twenty-First Century!  My cousin is coming to watch Rosina (they are going to have a LOT of fun!), making this our first date night since...the summertime, I think. The night of the Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me movie theater simulcast. We definitely need to do it more often. Ugh, I just feel like the last six months have alternated between very busy and decidedly shitty (illness, bad weather, grueling/disappointing travel). I know that was when my job started getting crazy, and when I got the first cold of the season--from which my sinuses have yet to recover. 

Speaking of which, I did finally make an appointment with that new doctor today. Unfortunately it's three weeks out, so I finally broke down and made a massage appointment for this weekend. I have been dealing with this shoulder crap since Christmas--enough!  No wonder I'm so damn grumpy all the time! O_o

Other news: we have learned almost all of the Bollywood choreo, with more than a month to go. On my way out I saw a tiny frog. I should've taken a picture--Rosina is really into frogs right now, and she was very excited to hear about it. It was smaller than a palmetto bug!  I think I could almost handle having tiny frogs living under the chimney. As long as I didn't find them in the toilet, or in my kettle! :/

Selfie:  I took this one on my way out of the car, listening to a new "New Rock" station. (It's from one of those soulless radio conglomerates, but they are actually filling an underserved market niche, at least.) I like that they throw in some Foo Fighters and Beastie Boys for the oldsters, and they even played Lorde today!  When I took this, there was a song on by one of those bands that wS heavily influenced by Blink-182. I think you know what I mean...

Missteps

I've been hearing Michael's commercials on the radio, and I just saw an A.C. Moore ad on TV. I have to wonder if it's because Hobby Lobby has been in the news. It can't be a coincidence--though they aren't prefacing every ad with an annoucement that their insurance covers IUDs, I suppose it's implied!

Speaking of crafting, today I learned that scratchy acrylic squares are great at getting water spots and soap scum off of glass shower doors. When a Magic Eraser won't work, reach for a tawashi. So yes, I cleaned the bathrooms today. I even scrubbed the grout in the shower!  It did need to get done, but it was also because I was avoiding something...

Our laptop died this morning. :(  My work laptop--vintage October 2012!--stopped working about two months ago, and while it was at the New York office being fixed I used our personal laptop, which is four or five years old. It was a little temperamental about the Remote Desktop sometimes, so I was glad to get the other one back a few weeks later--but it bricked again after only a few days. Our IT guy was supposed to send a reboot disk or something, but nothing really happened. Meanwhile, our home laptop was getting increasingly grumpy. I asked my manager about it a few days ago, and we reminded the IT guy about it again; he apologized and said he would look for a new laptop. Yesterday afternoon the trackball keys on our laptop stopped working. I did a system restore, since there was just a Windows update a few days ago, but it didn't fix the problem. After a few minutes of work today, the power cut out, and it wouldn't turn back on. We last backed up our files several months ago, and because we put almost all our photos onto Rosina's Shutterfly site, we won't really lose anything if we can't get it up again. Except several hundred dollars on a new laptop. We had been having some trouble with it freezing up at bad times, so maybe it's been coming for a while, but we're not happy about it. 

Dude, this college kid on Wheel of Fortune just lost several thousand dollars because he didn't know how to pronounce "Achilles". Ouch. I guess business-Spanish double majors at Indiana don't have to read The Iliad.  That was painful to watch... He actually won--which doesn't say much for the other contestants. 

Seriously, this day calls for some tawny port. 

Beat

I'm feeling better than yesterday, but it took me a while to fall asleep last night, so we are all turning in within the next few minutes. The lunch and office visit went well today--it really is a nice building, in a location near lots of retail and restaurants (a short walk to the best authentic Chinese place in town, and even a CVS 100 feet away, in case you really need Pringles and nail polish in the middle of the day), though I wish it wouldn't take driving through the worst morning traffic in town to get there. I'm pretty sure I can work out a flexible arrival time--9:15 would probably be doable. There are also several routes to ponder, since it's in the middle of town, near the intersection of two major roads and between two highway exits. It will also depend on where Rosina's preschool is. Apparently I need to get working on that! O_o

I did actually get to my dancing today!  The opening to the new choreo is cute and fairly simple--and the song is already stuck in my head. 

We are having a friend over for dinner on Saturday, and with us being sick for so long, the house is a WRECK. All the bathrooms, all the floors. Yuck. I will be scrubbing tile and sweeping tomorrow, I'll tell you. Have I mentioned my gold-leaf bathroom?

Yup. That is a dragonfly decal. Everything above the chair rail is gold leaf and painted lilypads; below it is painted blue, with koi and turtle decals. How do you remove gold leaf from a wall? I'm sure that never crossed the mind of the previous owners of this house, who went a bit overboard with some of the "artistic" touches. There's also some really fantastic amateur plumbing work. Oh, and they cost themselves thousands of dollars of crawlspace mold abatement by not installing twenty dollars of plastic gutter extenders. They were not the sharpest pencils in the box, just sayin'...

Serious topic for discussion:  my daughter will be three in five weeks, and still has never heard of a Disney Princess.  I am perfectly happy to keep it that way for as long as possible. We are not Disney people in general, though we have shown her the two Rescuers movies and some Winnie-the-Pooh. She has seen plenty of television, but it is definitely more of the PBS-educational-gender-neutral variety. Mark is going to a movie festival on Friday, and since my cousin is coming to babysit next week for our anniversary anyway, I'll be alone with Rosina. The Big Question: should I take her to see Frozen??  From all I've heard, this and Brave are both in the self-rescuing-princess mode, which I can totally get behind. And if she can handle the fairly harrowing elements in the Rescuers movies, she should be okay here. I just worry that this will open the Big Merch floodgates. She's already into superheroes--she likes watching Wonder Woman, and last weekend at the playground followed this kid with a Batman cape around like a puppy dog--so maybe I don't necessarily need to worry about things being less empowering. Ugh, I just don't want to go to that place any sooner than necessary. But I do think she might like the movie, and the music. I need to do more research...

This is a Prime Number

It was not a bad day, but I think I'm developing laryngitis. Vocal rest for everyone!

Also, in the most Bourgie news ever, we went to Carrabba's for dinner. I initially wanted Indian, but I could tell Mark wasn't feeling it. Comfort food it is!

I got a check from my grandmother. I am always conflicted about this: she doesn't need to be spending her fixed income on me, but then who am I to tell her not to spend her money however she wants? Mark said I should consider the check paying for our dinner. :)

Anyway, yes: prime number. I should not have acne and sun damage and wrinkles, but such is life. I should be thankful that my hair color is 100% my own! (Another thing to thank Grandma for, since I certainly didn't inherit the delayed grey from my mother!). Also, while I am no longer "cool" in the traditional culturally-dictated sense, I know plenty of awesome people in their forties and fifties; I would gladly emulate that kind of cool. A prime number is not a death sentence!  Honestly, being 23 totally sucked until I met my husband--another prime number. (Which reminds me that our ninth anniversary is in a few weeks, and we really need to start planning if we actually want to do something big for next year. Huh, that is a "mature" thing to do...)

I had been looking forward to going to the Lebanese festival today, but we're still just so run-down, and I could tell Mark wasn't looking forward to fighting crowds downtown--so we took Rosina to the playground instead. It had been two weeks, so she really let off some steam!  I took this great picture on our way to the car:  

My two favorite people, outside on a beautiful day!  That's a pretty nice birthday gift. :)

Okay Spring, now you're the drunk one

Eight days ago snow was predicted. Today it was almost 90 degrees. WTF?  I would like spring back, please! (Dude, the AC just came on!)  It did give me the impetus to go through Rosina's summer clothes. By weight she should just be getting into 18-month clothing, but in most things she needs at least 24 months in length. This means that the 18-month shorts from last summer still fit--though some may be a bit too small to cover her diaper in a bit, if she's potty-trained before the end of the summer they will fit well without a diaper. Summer clothing is easier for me to work with for her. Little sundresses can always have the sides or straps taken in, or can be worn with leggings if they're too short (though the latter strategy works all year round, provided the proportions are right). Anyway, contemplating her closet is much more interesting (and less depressing) than contemplating mine! She has at least two sundresses with horses on them. Horses!

Other than that, we didn't get up to too much today. I have finally started watching Smash, two years later, and at least in the first episodes it is so much fun!  Rosina liked dancing to the music as well. I made pork with sautéed apples for dinner--for which I have gotten into the convenient habit of slicing way too many apples.  Oh darn, I have to eat all of this sautéed apple?! My life is so hard. :) For tomorrow: I've meant to go to one of the local Asian markets for several weeks, but other things would intervene. I'd like to get some more curry paste and a whole bunch of soba and rice noodles. Ooh, and bao if they have any without MSG. I could eat bao forever. 

I am still dealing with this stupid crappy shoulder, so after doing some ab work, I mainly did upper body stuff for my daily bellydancing. I'm not sure if it helped much, but it couldn't hurt at this point. 

In crafting news, I have started some socks for Mark for an anniversary gift. (No, he does not need any more socks--but he did wear a hole in one recently, and if my repair doesn't hold they'll need to be replaced.). I'm using the second skein of Sock-Ease from the big box from my mother (this one is totally NYM colors, which I can needle Mark about), and I'm making Hermione's Everyday Socks. Not the most scintillating pattern, but he is not a fan of busy patterns on his socks. (Busy colorways are another story!) I've just started the heel. For the two pairs I knit myself during the Olympics, I decided to try a Padded Sweet Tomato Heel, hoping the padding would keep me from wearing through the heels too quickly. It's too soon to tell about that, but I don't think the fit is all that great for me--the rounds where you knit all the wrapped stitches seem to hit at a bad spot on my ankle. With these socks, though they are not for me, I'm attempting a regular short-row heel with slipped stitches. We shall see how this works out...

Selfie Month, Day 2: since I took a shower this afternoon, a rare glimpse of me with no makeup but some lip gloss. As I told Rosina in the NICU, don't get used to seeing me without eyeliner on. 

I had some trouble getting the light right while not looking insane...

A happy surprise

Today I was at Target, and I didn't notice until it was time to pay that I'd left my wallet home. It would've been annoying to waste the trip, but there really wasn't anything that couldn't wait until tomorrow--but a woman came up behind us and offered to pay for our order. Twenty dollars! I tried to refuse, but she insisted. My faith in humanity is restored! I'll be paying for a few anonymous drive-thru orders in the next few weeks. :)

It took a long while to fall asleep last night--even with NyQuil in my system--but I did actually feel better in the morning, and am well on my way back to normal now, hopefully. I can taste again, and maybe my left ear will get back to its usual 75 percent one of these days. Who knows, maybe I'll be up for cleaning the house one of these days! Seriously, the living room carpet and the master bathroom. No, just no. 

I was too sick to go to my dance class last night, but I did hear about this today. Sounds like a great way to stay motivated--and five minutes a day is nothing. Hip bumps while making dinner, even!  (Which is basically what I did today.)

Speaking of dinner, I made this tonight, and it came out really well. I used fat-free evaporated milk and low-fat sour cream instead of half-and-half and heavy cream, and it worked out fine. I also used homemade stock instead of bouillon. Does anybody really use bouillon cubes? Ugh, that is so much salt. I mean, maybe if you're camping out, or in your hurricane supplies, but really, yuck. 

I did promise selfies, did I not?  

Dirty hair and weird lighting, but I did promise.  These always look weird to me, presumably because they are reversed from what we see in the mirror. I'm sure I don't really have crazy eyes--not all the time, anyway.  

I guess I was pissed off...

Last night I was thinking about Hobby Lobby, and this was a quick search away:




You know you all needed this in your life.  Madeline Kahn, you were the awesomest of the awesome.  And seriously, when women's health is in the news, Madeline Kahn. :(

So everybody has that person in their life who thinks they are the first person in the world to ever go through a completely normal life event, right?  I am dealing with this right now. I want to give this person the benefit of the doubt, but everything they do is getting SO ANNOYING to me, to a nearly irrational degree.  Do I need to get a grip?  Perhaps.  Do they need to stop acting like they have discovered The New World, when there were already people living there?  Hells yes.

My annoying work project will apparently be an ongoing one, but the initial frenzy is over, so my hours will be more normal for the time being.  There have been a lot of changes in a very short time (our office has even moved, to a part of town that will make my commute, once resumed, about 15 minutes longer--not even counting the obscene morning traffic between here and there--but our old area was just not safe at night anymore, plus the new building apparently has a consistently-working HVAC, so that's nice), but I think they are all for the better. The person I used to work for/with was capricious and unpredictable--though he never had anything but good things to say about my work--and the new people are, well, normal? I should not be pleasantly surprised when people act consistently, and are actually friendly! Also, a few years ago one of them provided our office with the best brownie recipe EVER. I mean that. The secret ingredient: pistachios. One of these days, when I see a good deal on pistachios, I am going to make them, and will attempt to not eat all of them in one sitting. They were SO GOOD. 

To sign off on a happy note, because we are all sick here (even Mark, who is the most helpless and annoying sick person ever, bless him) here's a blurry picture of Rosina in bunny ears. She thought it was hilarious when I pretended not to recognize her...

Preview

I owe a longer post, but for a sneak peek, this happened:

Pasteis natas!  Jealous? :) No, we didn't get all the way to Newark (I wish--last time I was in Seabra's they were still selling candy cigarettes!), but we did go to Nando's while in the DC area this weekend. If they weren't $2.25 each, I'd have bought like, two dozen to put in the freezer. If you have never had these, well, you should. 

Stir crazy

We definitely should've tried to go out today...but when it finally stopped raining it was almost time for Rosina's nap. And I'm not going out tomorrow unless it's absolutely necessary. I could lie and say it's because my kid has no body fat, but nope, it's just too damn cold. I have no idea how the Jetta's glow plug and engine would react at nine degrees. It almost makes me want to go out and start the car in the morning to see how long the glow plug indicator stays on. Almost. So yeah, everybody bundle up!  I foresee drinking a lot of tea tomorrow.  Oh wait, that's every day. It will definitely be a good day to make sauce. I may even make homemade pasta--it would keep me in the warm kitchen, in any case. 

I have taken time off knitting for the past few days to rest my wrists. I am about to start a new sample project, and it will be knit at a fairly tight gauge, so I need the break now! That green fiber is working up  pretty quickly (or maybe I've just finally gotten the hang of this drop-spindling thing), and will be nice to return to when I need a break from the sample. 

Speaking of the fiber crafts: I suppose I can't be the last one to know about the Yarncraft alums' new (non-fibery) blog and podcast. Pretty good so far!  I knew I liked them for a reason. They are funny and definitely not G-rated (not that I mind). I've also started listening to Neil DeGrasse Tyson's podcast--relevant to my interests and funny!  Eugene Mirman, man. 

In Anglophilic news, I am down to my last Mma Ramotswe book. :/ On a happier note, Downton Abbey!  Carson FTW. Business as usual for Thomas! Grr, that stupid maid. Poor Anna and Bates...and Molesley!  Oh man...  I am excited about the guest stars for this season. Kiri Te Kanawa as Nellie Melba!  (I'm guessing there is a lot of overlap between opera nerds and Downton fans.)

Clothes horse

There is a huge kids' consignment sale happening in a few weeks, and before I decided whether or not to go, I needed to go through Rosina's closet. Well, provided we can make 2T clothes fit, this kid won't need a thing. Sneakers, maybe. Between a few things I've picked up piecemeal on clearance and some very generous hand-me-downs, she has enough clothing for two kids!  I think I counted 27 summer tops, just for this year. Now, some of them may not even get worn--if they fit too oddly (it happens with this one fairly frequently), or if I can't find a matching bottom--but still. I am very happy to have friends so generous with their kids' clothes, and am just as happy to pass our outgrown clothes to others. One lucky baby is going to get a really awesome raincoat someday soon...

I did neglect to mention that we did have a fun outing on Tuesday--lunch with the E family and their little E. :) Chips and salsa were consumed--Rosina can always be relied on to eat them, happily!  The little E is a fairly chill baby. Hooray for my friends whose really young babies are sleeping at night!  I don't know how I would've survived if Rosina weren't a good sleeper.   Seriously, if only getting seven hours makes me cranky, there might have been a homicide...

Made the pizza for dinner--with extra dough in the freezer, ready to go--and also got some bread started. It's going to be cold tomorrow, with a high just above freezing, and we have errands to run. It will be so nice to turn that oven to 450 and fill the house with the scent of yeasty goodness. (Okay, that sounded weird, but you know what I mean, right?)

Plans for the weekend? Well, I'd wanted to go to this bellydance workshop on Saturday, but I was waiting to see how my neck felt--I'll decide tomorrow. We'll definitely be taking down the tree and packing away all the holiday stuff. :/ I've been playing phone tag with F and R for a few weeks now, but I'll try again tomorrow--we haven't seen them in months!

Perfunctory New Year's post

We're here, we got a tiny bit accomplished, etc. Rosina wasn't feeling too hot teething-wise, I think (jeez, when will these molars break through already?!), and Mark had a NyQuil hangover, so other than going to the playground and my quick trip for groceries during naptime, we laid low today.  Indeed, I am about to get changed, read a few chapters of my Botswana book and turn in. Back to the grind tomorrow, but at least it's a Thursday already!  

I did finish the hat last night (pics to come), and am about 25% done with my scarf:  

(Colors are not all that accurate.) Last year was a cooler year than usual, with February being the coldest month (and the only one without a 70-degree day, I think). Plus there was a record low the day before my birthday (the high was 48)--easy to remember because Mark and the Thursday knitters threw a surprise party for me, and it was a pretty miserable day! Charting the temperatures has helped me master yet another realm of minutiae. ;)

The other main thing I accomplished today, other than a bit of cleaning, was a quick butternut squash sauce with leftovers in desperate need of use. I might not take the trouble to make it if I didn't have squash already roasted, but it worked out well over sautéed chicken and egg noodles. I think I'm going to make pizza tomorrow...and while I have the yeast and flour out, maybe I'll get some no-knead bread started. It does make excellent toast. 

Lazy Sunday, minus the cupcakes

Well, everything got done--and on time, even.  We all had a lovely Christmas.  Rosina was very excited about her tricycle (though it will be at least six months until she's tall enough to use it!), and has been having a lot of fun with her Ikea train set and child-size table and the tea set.  She is less interested in the doll I developed carpal tunnel from making, but I'm sure she'll warm up to it.  (If not, I will grumble, but I think my niece would love it.)  Mark picked up his sister from the airport while the roast was in the oven, and it was a great visit! (Evidence:  Rosina crying, "Lisa, Lisa..." when we dropped her off at the airport.  It may take a few days before she gets over it.)  We even got up to Hillsborough and its lovely yarn shop.  I have decided to take the plunge and make a Color Affection, despite the 1200 yards of garter stitch, so I picked up a skein of Malabrigo Sock (in either Azules or Aguas--I can't remember right now) to go with an Eggplant skein I already have and a skein of KnitPicks Bare Fingering Superwash that's been hanging around forever.  I will probably be working on another sweater sample next month (in worsted, thankfully), so I may not get to this for a bit.

And speaking of garter stitch, I am about to restart my Temperature Scarf--probably in garter stitch this time instead of seed stitch.  The yarn I initially picked for the purple stripe was more of a brownish-red than purple, and surprisingly, I don't have any worsted-weight purple wool!  I have purple fingering leftover from the sweater sample, but it's on a cone and I don't want to have to measure it out and double it.  There are going to be enough ends to sew in on this thing!  Anyway, I've decided to try some Cascade 128 Tweed I got from a destash.  Hopefully the sixty rows of aran/bulky will not stick out too badly in a 730-row scarf.  I did finish the mittens on size 8s, and they may even be a little bigger than I need after blocking (ugh, tight mittens are no fun).  I also dashed off a quick hat to replace my sadly lost Scotty hat, but I think it's too small and may need to frog it. :/

For whatever reason, we are all really run-down.  Mark has been sleeping for most of the afternoon, and I kind of went in and out earlier while waiting for Rosina to settle down for her nap.  I hope we're not getting sick!  We're going to a kid-friendly New Year's party on Tuesday, and I don't want to have to cancel! 

Domestic activities

Two loads of laundry (including diapers), present wrapping, minor straightening-up, dishes, rotisserie chicken enchiladas...and stock currently in the works out of the aforementioned chicken. Not bad for an eerily warm day (79--record high), most of which I spent feeling lightheaded and craving Almond Joys. Or better yet, the Almond Joy frozen custard they used to make at that stand in Wilmington.  With a side of Cool Ranch Doritos. Seasonale is proving to be more like "Annuale" than expected...

But look!  I finished Rosina's doll!

...

...

(Forgive the wine rack in the background.) Hoping to blow a toddler mind. The pattern was technically supposed to be Cinderella--the Disney version, even, with a light blue dress and tiara--but since Rosina's only Disney exposure so far is The Rescuers (yet somehow she knows who Mickey Mouse is--Jungian collective unconscious?), I felt no need to be specific. At this point the doll could be an anachronistically-dressed sorority girl, for all she knows. Or Mommy on a performance day. Hmm, I like that one. Needs earrings, though. 

Not live-blogging Scandal, I promise...

Can I just say, though, TMI?! Blech.  Also,  I am still hoping John Barrowman will come back. :).  And some awesome money lines from Cyrus!

Another busy day, though it looks as if my work craziness will be back to its usual pace--maybe even a bit slow because of the holidays.  I'll be surprised if I don't get a call while we're gone, though!

OMG. If you haven't seen this, prepare to squee.

 

In Rosina news, she helped me make banana bread this afternoon: 

...and immediately started flipping out. When naptime calls, you'd best answer!

Looks like my family's not going to leave home until early evening tomorrow, but we're still aiming to arrive mid-afternoon. Indoor pool, cable, king-sized bed..I guess we don't need much. ;)

Knitting was productive today!  I think I've got a good start on some stranded mittens--for myself, TYVM--which will be great car knitting over the weekend. I made enough progress on Rosina's doll yesterday that it definitely won't be enough for the whole trip. Also managed to pick up free stuff while at Panera--thanks, ladies! :)

Back to the laundry!

O Tannenbaum

The tree is up, if not yet decorated. Rosina kind of lost her shit when she saw it. :)  Anyway, a bit of cleaning happened, but much more is needed--and the bare minimum will certainly be done by Friday morning. We have been trying to get a picture of Rosina for our holiday card, but the light just hasn't been right. We'll still have time when we get back, so I'm not too worried. 

Put in another fairly long morning with work. Hopefully this was the last one for a while. I've well more than made up for the two hours I'll miss on Friday--and I may get a call while I'm gone. I shouldn't complain--I certainly don't mind the money--but I will be pleased when all this reorganization is finished. 

Saw the cutest picture of Cathy's daughter today!  I love it when you can see the parents' features in their babies--especially when they look more like the one parent and then something from the other pops out. I may not want to put her down when I finally see her!  It's funny, when I held my friend Erica's baby a few weeks ago, it was lovely--but my ovaries were silent. I guess I really did only want one kid!  Haha! No, I guess I feel the same way about babies as I do about pets--I love them and they're awesome, but I see no need to have (another) one of my own. As if the one I had didn't keep me on my toes!

Tomorrow: ugh, get Mark's car inspected, go to the library (finished Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?; still can't shake that I've read it before), pick up a few things for the trip, assemble gift baskets and wrap presents, find a dinner recipe worthy of the feta in the fridge so I can use it before we go. I've finished the mittens, got done with the messy part of a large felting expedition, and started the ornament project. I am about ten rows from the heel on Mark's socks, but since they're a surprise, I will need something else to work on for the trip. The doll for Rosina is crocheted, as are the aforementioned ornaments, and I can't crochet at such a tight gauge for very long. I have a few things in mind, but I need to plan...

First-world problems

Scandal!  There is some serious messed-up-ness going on there.  If I can't handle watching CSI, you know I have to cover my eyes for some of this.  And James, oh James.

Half done with the first mitten of the larger pair of mittens.  Worked on Mark's sock last night at Panera.  It is a very tedious sock.

The high today is 79.  The high Sunday is 38.  I am not sure what to think about this.  All I know is that Rosina is fighting me about trying to leave the house.  Molars, I'm looking at you.  I only hope I can go to Trader Joe's tonight and it won't be a zoo.  In the meantime, I'm gonna open some windows.

In other TV news, I had been saving the last four episodes of Psych on Hulu so I could watch them over time.  I now only have one left.  Love that show!  ("Come on, son!")

Day job:  still doing tedious stuff.  Teutonic overlord has been temporarily replaced by Russian one.  Good times to be had.  Relearning the ins and outs of the system I left over two years ago.  Blech.  By the way, the Messiah gig did not work out--I know the woman doing it, and I think she just beat my response by a few minutes. :)

Rosina is still having trouble getting to sleep at night in her bed, rather than in ours.  I know the darkness is the main problem, but we still haven't hit on the right combination.

I forgot to put up a picture of her Halloween costume!  I was planning to dress her as Wednesday Addams because I'd found an all-black outfit, but it was in the high 70s that day so I improvised: