Golden Snitch

So I've been spending too much time on Ravelry and found a pattern I HAD to try.  It turned out pretty dang cute, which makes me very happy.  I think I will be making quite a few of these!!!  Maybe I'll do a Harry Potter theme for my Christmas Tree :)

Had to have a picture of the original...

golden snitch ornament I crocheted :)  so pretty and sparkly

yay for crochet!

Yesterday I started and finished a super soft newborn hat for the rigglet, and I can't wait to see him in it.  I love the yarn I used (Mirasol Miski yarn - 100% baby llama) and the pattern was extremely easy.  I think you could finish it in 20 minutes if you just buckled down and had no other distractions.

I also finished an adorable little owl ornament this afternoon.  I can't wait to make many more of these...so cute and easy to make look very different.

"hello!" I think I might give the next one tufted ears :)

little owl on a tree (or door handle in this case :)

TGIF

DAY FOUR:  Today I am thankful that it is Friday!  Even though I don't really have a set schedule during the week, Steve does and I am excited to get to spend time with him.  This is only his second two day weekend since busy season ended for his crew so it is still a novelty to have him home both days.  This weekend I'm not so sure I'll get to see him much Saturday, as I think he might go try out his new snowmachine, but at least he will get to be doing something that is fun rather than working.

I hope everyone else enjoys their Friday; please keep my dad in your thoughts/prayers.  He is going to have to have surgery at some point soon for a torn rotary cuff, and I know he is very bummed to miss out on another winter with full mobility.  Thank you in advance!

unplanned cleaning day

DAY THREE:  I am thankful for having a house full of nice things to put back in their places, lots of warm, snuggly clothes that need to be washed, folded and put away, and plenty of dirty dishes that need to be washed, dried and tucked away in the cupboards.

My mom has a plaque in her kitchen similar to this, and I always look at it when 

I'm washing dishes.  I really need this at my house as a reminder every time

I wash the dishes, sometimes multiple times a day, to be thankful.  It's so, so true!

Today I planned on cutting out the rest of the pieces I need for my Christmas yellow brick road quilt.  I also need to cut off the extra batting and backing so I can sew the binding on the quilt I made for my little rigglet Rowan.  I left my rotary cutter at my sister Kelsey's house last time I was there, and it's always more fun to cut with company, so I just planned on going over to her place and having a cutting party.

In the back of my head I knew I had some cleaning to do that I've been avoiding by working on Christmas crafts, but I figured I'd get it done tomorrow.  I got my stuff together that I needed to take with me and took Beau outside for a quick (and chilly!) morning walk.

Then I took a shower, and the water didn't drain.  I mean it did eventually, but I can't stand it when things don't work properly and especially despise bathtubs that don't drain efficiently.  Usually I would try to get on my knees, bend over, and get in the drain myself with a wire hanger, but I looked down at my rather large belly and decided to just call the plumber.  I had just cleaned it out about three months ago anyway, and had gotten a rather large amount of hair out of there, so I figured it's probably further down the pipes.  I live in an old house, and the pipes for the sink and bathtub are interconnected and hook up to the main pipes after a pretty sharp corner, which we've had problems with before, so I'm glad to be getting it good and cleaned out.  Last time we had it snaked was over three years ago, so I guess it probably needs it anyway.

I called the plumber around 9am, and was happy to hear they could fit it in today.  But they couldn't come straight over of course, so I had to cancel my plans for a cutting party.  Instead I've spent the morning cleaning, and cleaning, and cleaning.  I always forget how I am about cleaning; once I start I just can't stop.  I just see more and more things that need cleaning, or organizing, or putting away, and I just keep going and going!  I decided to take a quick break to blog about what I'm thankful for before I forgot (and to eat lunch) and realized that I am so thankful just to have things to clean!  I'm also thankful for the energy and lack of back pain I have today - it makes going on a cleaning spree a lot easier and more productive.  But now I have to get back to organizing Steve's desk.  Hope you have have a thoughtful, thankful Thursday!

Vegetable Roast

Tonight I felt like something wholesome, easy and delicious for dinner.  I wanted a roast, but we didn't have any meat thawed out.  So I just made a vegetable roast...and I made it in a cast iron dutch oven in the oven instead of a crock pot (didn't want to have to lug the crock pot out and have it take up the entire counter).  We have some frozen scallops that Steve can cook up for protein when he gets home.  It turned out delicious and looks amazing too so I thought I'd share.

washed and sliced carrots and potatoes

sliced onions

add some chicken stock and brown sugar

all done and steaming

Yummy, can't wait to dig in :)

taking time to give thanks

November is one of my favorite months of the year, mostly because of Thanksgiving, but also because it means December, and more importantly Christmas, is right around the corner.  Both Thanksgiving and Christmas are holidays that have been commercialized to the max yet have great meaning.  This year I would like to really focus in on the meaning behind each holiday and think very hard about why we are celebrating.  For the month of November, I would like to share something I am thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving Day.  Since it is already the second day of the month, I will share two things today.

DAY ONE:  I am thankful for the snow and how beautiful it makes everything.  Even the wind is beautiful in its own way, and I am thankful to God for creating such an intricate, amazing earth for us to live on and enjoy.

snowy view from my house

DAY TWO:  I am thankful for having the means to do crafts and hobbies, while others in this world are struggling just to get enough to eat each day.  I love to spend time each day working on sewing, knitting, crocheting, and other craft projects and am so grateful for the chance to do so!

What are you thankful for?  Maybe you could also try to make it a goal this month to take time each day to recognize something you are thankful for :)

31 Weeks

As of Saturday I have been pregnant for 31 weeks!  It's a little hard to believe that it has been so long, time is just flying by.  Saturday was spent hanging out with Steve, and we had such a good day!  It was his first Saturday off in a while, and it was so nice to have him home two days in a row, especially since Sunday was so busy.

Sunday we woke up to snow, which was so exciting!  It was actually kind of funny; Steve had been awake for a few minutes and I was just opening my eyes.  Then I remembered it was maternity pictures day, and I sat up really fast and asked Steve, "did it snow?"  He sat up and looked out the window on his side of the bed and said, "It did!".  I did not believe him at first and climbed over him to look out the window.  When I saw the snow with my own eyes I was so excited.  It had finally snowed!  And it was in the 20's, so this wasn't a dirty, ugly, slushy snow, it was a soft dusting of sparkly, beautiful snow.

We got up and headed to breakfast with Steve's dad and step mom at Middle Way Cafe.  I got multi-grain pancakes with real maple syrup and fresh fruit, and it was so delicious!  I LOVE their pancakes, they are the multi-grain/vegan pancakes I've ever had.  It was great to catch up with Rick and Dorle, who run a kayak tour company, A Seaside Adventure, out of their cabin in Little Tutka Bay, which is across the bay from Homer.  Steve's dad and mom built the cabin when Steve was just a baby, and various family has lived over there running the business ever since.  They are so busy in the summer (as is Steve) that they don't really get away from Homer at all, and we only got down to see them at the beginning of the summer for Memorial Day in May.  They were so excited to get to see my baby bump in person :)

Here's a blurry iPhone picture of us at breakfast

We headed home to shower up and get beautiful for our maternity photo shoot, then headed over to Kincaid Park to meet our photographer (and long, longtime friend) Mitch Kitter for the pictures.  Beau wore his Christmas Sweater for the occasion and was very excited to be included in some of the pictures.  It was so fun and I cannot wait to see all the pictures.  I posted a link to some teasers from the shoot earlier today, so you can go check them out if you haven't already.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and a great October!  And I guess I should add Happy Halloween! for all of you who like to dress up and celebrate this holiday.  I'm not really into dressing up, but I love seeing my nephews dressed up and seeing all the decorated pumpkins and such.

Maternity Picture Teasers!

Here is a link to our Maternity Picture Teasers:  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150513155233222.472280.68519628221&type=1

We woke up to a beautiful, clean dusting of snow, and I was instantly excited about the prospects of our maternity pictures having snow in them.  I was hoping it would snow in time for us to get them done, but knew it was a long shot.  God really answered my prayers, because not only did it snow, it stayed cold enough for the day and didn't get windy so the snow just dusted every surface and stayed there the entire day.  No dirty, slushy mess, it was truly a beautiful day and perfect for getting our pictures done.  We met Mitch from Propaganda out at Kincaid Park and got started.  I can't wait to see more of the pictures, and have to give a huge shoutout to my longtime friend Mitch for always being so amazing.  We love you Mitch!!

Nursery Decorations!

Last week I received the prints and number cards I ordered off of Etsy but unfortunately I wasn't at home to get them all set up so I've had to wait.  Plus I had to go pick out frames for the prints, which I finally did yesterday.  I spent all morning holed away in his room getting things set up, and it's finally done!  I'm so happy with how everything turned out, what do you all think?

view of his little dresser and crib
the cards are from InkTreePress

larger view of the prints - I love them!
they are from ohhellodear

New Sled and a Moose Parade

This has been a busy week.  Steve finally found the perfect deal he was looking for and purchased another snowmachine.  I've been busing moving us back into our home and getting baby's room even more ready for him to get here (more on that later).  Plus last night I went to Fiddler on the Roof with my mom and older sister, Kelsey.  We had a blast!  We went to dinner at a fancy restaurant, Saks Cafe, then walked over to the Performing Arts Center for the show.  I wish now that I would have gotten a picture of us all dressed up and enjoying the evening, but alas, I did not.

Steve excited about his new sled:
2010 Polaris Assault 800

30w and 3d pregnant, blocking part of Steve's new toy with my big belly

Steve and I were out in the yard, putting the cover on his new sled.

We heard some crunching and looked over to see this moose staring at us

as it walked by...

Then we hear more crunching, and see that there are actually three (3!) moose

in our yard.  They walked slowly up the hill, stopping to watch us every few

steps or so.

Goodbye moose!
This is one of the reasons I love winter at my house, the moose just love our
little circle for some reason!  I just have to be careful not to let Beau run out
into the yard without checking for big ol' moose first.  

Hope you all had a great week, I am just amazed again at how fast time is flying by.  Next week is November!