Part of Your History

13 Months

2012-01-24T10:07:00.000-05:00

Today Clara is 13 months old! Her sweet little personality is shining through more each day. At her one year checkup our doctor asked if we'd dealt with any tantrums yet. I shook my head no and told him how she was such a good baby. Well, I'm pretty sure that was her cue to start being a little more picky, defiant and grouchy. Anyone who knows Clara at all is probably laughing or shaking their head and thinking, "Sarah has no idea" and I completely agree. She is still a SUPER good baby, but this past month she's thrown a few face slaps in with her snuggles, leg-kicking wrestling matches in with her "sure I'll lay her quietly while you change my diaper" moments, and increased crying and fussing to make me appreciate her near-constant smiles and darling chatter just a little more. Here's what else she's up to at 13 months:

-Her favorite toys are her cell phone and a ladybug puppet - both can keep her entertained for very long periods of time

-Independent playtime has resumed! We went for a dry spell of screaming whenever mom left the room, but we've worked our way back up to it and Clara loves it. She'll happily play in by herself for 30-60 minutes or so and I think it puts her in a better mood for the rest of the day. I love that she's learning to entertain herself and build her imagination by using only what she has during this time each day. This will probably be an invaluable skill when and if a new baby joins the family. (not an announcement) It helps my sanity too! Especially considering the next point...

-We're down to one nap a day. I fought this for a while, but she was ready. We're still figuring out when the ideal time is, but most days it's right after an early lunch.

-Clara loves to "give loves" - to her parents, her toys, and even the cat. She gently lays her head on you to give you a love. It's super sweet.

-Nighttime sleep is at an all-time high right now (probably why we're down to one nap) but we've kind of just been following her lead on this one. These days Clara's ready for bed between 6:30 and 7:00 and sleeps until 8:00+ in the morning. I'm pretty sure she enjoys some quiet playtime on both ends of her sleep, but she is definitely eager to get to bed each night and doesn't make any noise for me to come get her for 13 or 14 hours. Insane, I know.

-She loves to sit and look at books. It's hard to really read her a story, but she loves to look at the pictures and turn the pages herself. Her favorite books are MOO and In My Tree.

-She's continuing to learn animal sounds and we're starting to work on body parts. She's an eager talker, even if the words don't make a lot of sense (to me).

-She's made a seamless transition to all of the foods that are now permitted: whole milk, peanut butter sandwiches, strawberries, and oranges are all favorites.

-When she's finished eating, she'll sign all done. But if I'm a little slow to get her out of her seat she'll start to casually and subtly drop any remaining food off the side of her tray.

-She doesn't seem to have any serious issues with stranger anxiety. She might take a minute to warm up, but most of the time will happily let anyone hold her.

-Clara has the sweetest little giggle and such a soft and sweet little voice. I can't wait for her to start saying more words just to hear that little voice.

-She's a speedy little crawler and although she walked across the room a few times by herself at the beginning of the month, she's regressed back to mostly crawling and cruising (while running) along furniture. No worries, I'm sure she'll be off and running before we know it.

-Clara loves loves loves the kitty. We're pretty sure the cat doesn't share a mutual appreciation for Clara.

-She has such a little belly! It's no wonder - her daily breakfast consists of an entire banana, a cup of cheerios and about a cup of whole milk. She can really eat and after a meal her tummy is especially round and pronounced.

changes

2012-01-19T11:35:00.000-05:00

The past week has been a crazy one! The bad news is the accounting firm that Spencer has worked for during the past five years dissolved last week. It happened without warning and was a bit unexpected to say the least. The good news is, within a week Spencer had two interviews, two offers and has accepted a new position with KPMG here in Salt Lake. We feel very fortunate that he was able to find something so quickly. I'm proud of him for landing in such a great spot! The best part might be the fact that he doesn't start his new job for a week and a half. When all is said and done we'll have enjoyed nearly a full month of him being home a lot more than usual, during what is typically the busiest time of the year. Hooray for extra husband/daddy time!

It's official

2012-01-09T13:07:00.000-05:00

As of last night, I think we can safely say we've been christened as parents. In other words, we've both been vomited on. My initiation came several months ago (I'll spare you the photo of me drenched in mushed bananas that I sent to Spencer while he was at work that day) and Spencer's came last night. Twice. We felt so bad for little Clara, but the experience didn't seem to phase her. We gave her a bath (her second that day) and some extra snuggles before bed, but this morning she's back to her dancing, singing, squealing little self.

CTR Towels

2012-01-07T15:37:00.000-05:00

This week my project was a bit rushed and last minute, but I still did it. My only regret is that I forgot to take a photo of the finished product.

In October I was released from teaching the CTR 7 class in Primary. I loved teaching primary and especially this age. It's a big year for the kids - they are turning 8 and preparing to get baptized. So for a birthday/baptism gift, I made each of the kids a baptism towel. I bought a fat quarter (or found a piece of fabric from my stash) in their favorite color(s) and cut out the CTR shield, appliqueing it to the towel. They turned out super cute and were an easy and fairly quick (roughly an hour per towel) gift to make for them to have on their special day.

Even though I got released a few months ago, I had supplies to make the last few towels (and I really wanted to). So this week, my project was to make my last towel for the youngest girl in my class (she turned 8 on December 30th and got baptized today). Early in the year I asked what her favorite color was and she thought for a long time and finally said, "ruby." When I clarified that she meant a dark, deep red color she said, "no, more like a dark pink." So dark pink it was.

2011 Remembered

2012-01-06T14:34:00.002-05:00

2011 was a good year! Here's a quick recap of some of the highlights that come to mind:

Family:
-My life pretty much revolved around Clara and getting my footing as a new mom. It's a big change, but one that also felt completely natural for me. It came with challenges, frustration and some seriously scary moments, but it has also been so rewarding to be a mother. It has been a joy-filled experience!

-It has been so fun to watch Spencer grow into his role as a father this year. He and Clara have a very special bond and they just love to be together. Nothing makes Clara light up like Daddy coming home.

-We feel blessed to be living near the hub of family activity and got to see every one of our parents, siblings, nieces and nephews in 2011.

Work:
-Spencer's responsibilities at work increased and he went from super busy to crazy busy. Most days he's gone for 12-14 hours.

-My etsy shop business has increased more than 150% over 2010 and been a great little thing to keep me busy outside of caring for Clara. I really appreciate my clients and also my husband who supports me in my work.

-I've only kept up with one marketing design client from my Park City days. She comes out to my house on an as-needed basis to work on brochures, web design, e-blasts and ads. We get together every couple of weeks during nap time and I enjoy our time together. I don't miss my other Park City work...

Church:
-I got released from Primary and called into Young Womens. It is an exciting calling, but can be a bit intimidating and is a huge time commitment. I really love spending time with the girls and getting to know them bettter. I'm also blessed to serve with other great leaders and love getting to work so closely with some great women in my ward. I'm still a bit scared that I'll eventually have to teach with a member of the YW General Presidency in the room (the second counselor is in my ward and attends our YW regularly; the president is in my stake!) but thankfully it hasn't happened yet.

-Spencer was called as the Elders Quorum President in our ward. We had a great meeting with the whole Stake Presidency when he was called. He has wonderful counselors and a great secretary and they are all excited and willing to work.

Travel:
-As soon as busy season was over we took a road trip to St. George - just Spencer, Clara and me.

-We spent a long weekend with my entire family at a cabin/house in Bear Lake. The weather was perfect and my uncle was so nice to come along (with his boat). Spencer and I both got up on water skis and Clara enjoyed splashing a bit in the shallow water.

-At the end of July we flew to California for a long weekend and stayed with Spencer's sister Heather. They treated us to five star accommodations at Chez Richardson and we went to three different beaches. Clara met the Pacific Ocean and traveled really well. I also got to see my dear friend Jo while we were there.

-Spencer's whole family all met up in Orlando for a Disney cruise to the Bahamas. We visited Nassau and Castaway Cay. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed spectacular weather. It was a really great trip.

Other:
-In June I started running again. This time with some of my neighbor friends. We run several mornings a week at 5:45 and Amy and I trained for a half marathon! We ran the SOJO half marathon in October and had a great time.

52 Projects

2012-01-06T13:03:00.002-05:00

I have a goal this year to do one project every week. As a wife and mother, life gets very cyclical and the same things need to be done over and over again: doing laundry, making dinner, grocery shopping, cleaning, changing diapers, etc. You get the idea. It seems that most things I do get undone or need to be done repeatedly. I do think it's really important to find joy in our responsibilities, even the everyday and mundane. But I also think it's important to do things that help you feel accomplished, like you're using and building talents, and making yourself, your home, family, and community better in a [more] tangible way.

So. The plan is to do one thing each week that is a little more permanent - something I can finish or something with a result that will make me smile. They can be big or small. Painting a piece of furniture, a sewing project, organizing or beautifying a space, canning... anything! I'm excited. I think it will be really good for me and my family, and it will be a great motivator to get a lot of things done instead of just adding to the list.

And it might sound a little OCD of me, but I really love that with January 1 being on a Sunday this year, each week is already defined in a perfect pod that ends on a Saturday. Love it!

Christmas 2011

2012-01-04T23:36:00.000-05:00

This year was Clara's second Christmas. Remember last year? We had an awesome Christmas in the hospital with our sweet new little baby girl who still didn't have a name.

This year Clara was a bit more animated and actually got some gifts. Christmas was on a Sunday, which I thought was fantastic. It was a little more difficult to coordinate beween families, but I was so pleased to be able to go to church, see friends, sing beautiful Christmas hymns with a large congregation and hear uplifting messages about the peace that we can find through the Savior. We came home, had a snack and Clara settled in for a nap. We didn't actually get to "Christmas morning" (ie opening gifts) until almost 3:00 in the afternoon. Sometimes the magic of Christmas ends in a pile of wrapping paper and an afternoon of post-holiday blues. But the slower pace of our Christmas meant the whole day felt special and sweet.

When Spencer asked me on December 23rd what I wanted for Christmas, I was a bit worried. But he came through and insisted that my gift be one of the first to be opened. Smart guy, because with my sweet new lens, I was able to capture some of the magic of Christmas in just the way I had hoped - with a fast 1.8 aperture.

Finger puppets! She learned three new animal sounds that very morning.

Daddy showing Clara "The Little Book of Clara" that Santa left in his stocking. Clara clings to her favorite new outfit.

Taking a break from presents for a hug.

Clara got some blocks for Christmas.

Spencer got a new toy that will be fun for he and Clara. If it ever snows, we may have to take Clara on her first snowshoeing adventure this year.

Spencer trying on Clara's birthday hat for size. Not sure if she's amused...

Testing out her new swing for one of our big trees outside!

After opening gifts, we headed up to my parents house where we met up with Spencers parents and Carol Diane for a nice Christmas dinner. We exchanged gifts and enjoyed a merry evening together. What a wonderful day we had reflecting on the birth of the Savior. It made it all the more lovely to share the festivities with people we love.

12 Months

2012-01-02T23:46:00.002-05:00

At 12 months, Clara:

-weighs 17.5 lbs (3rd percentile)

-is 28.25 inches tall (20th percentile)

-loves to eat, feeds herself, and is no longer spoon fed anything. Even a bowl of oatmeal (offered with a spoon) will eagerly be attacked by both hands.

-sleeps 12+ hours at night

-seems to be phasing out her second nap

-loves to crawl, cruise and practice walking

-can take 3-4 steps unassisted

-loves to push around her laundry basket or walker/cart by herself

-waves hello (like a princess - all in the wrist) and bye bye (with folded fingers - sometimes facing herself)

-makes "blinky eyes" upon request

-hardly fusses or cries, but a verse of the wheels on the bus will cheer her up if she gets upset (the wipers going swish swish swish are her favorite)

-can do the "itsy bitsy spider" with her hands

-rawrs like a lion, moos like a cow, neighs like a horse, hoots like an owl, woofs like a dog

-loves to watch the "I Am A Child of God" video from mormon messages

-will stand and swing her hips to dance, and bob her head to music

-cries when mom or dad leave, but will also happily go to anyone who looks friendly

-is more snuggly than ever

-mostly wears 9 month size clothing (with a few 6 month and 12 month in there as well)

-likes to pat her kitty cat

-knows when she's doing something she shouldn't (like reaching for a lamp cord or heading for an off-limits corner) but kind of enjoys getting caught

-loves having her teeth brushed before bed

-claps her hands whenever someone says "yay"

-giggles and squeals in delight when she's chased around furniture

-nods her head yes and shakes her head no

-say "night night", "num num" and "nummy"

-loves to play peek-a-boo

Just One Year

2011-12-26T13:02:00.000-05:00

During the first year time seems so fleeting. Babies change quickly and it's impossible to keep them in any given stage for more than a few days. All around you are reminders that the time will pass quickly - even a line of Carter's clothing is appropriately named "just one year" (although Clara being on the small side, will still be wearing these for a few months yet). When her birthday arrived we could hardly believe it. What a year it has been - probably the happiest yet for our family. We love our sweet baby girl and feel so blessed to be her parents!

For her big day, my only hope was to have her know that it was a special day. And happily, I think she caught on right away! As soon as she woke up, Spencer and I sang her Happy Birthday (this happened several times throughout the day) and she just smiled and giggled and danced and clapped. We snuggled in bed for a while, had a peekaboo session and then headed to breakfast at IHOP with Aunt Carol and Clara's cousins Harriet, Jed and Henry. She loves pancakes, so it was a perfect birthday breakfast.

Breakfast @ IHOP - not having the best hair day and super glazed-over from trying to squeeze a special breakfast in when she's usually napping

Clara had a nap while Spencer and I spent the afternoon making the final preparations for her party that evening. Things were definitely low key as far as parties go, but it was loosely based around a red, pink and white snowflake theme. I saw an idea to make snowflake garlands a few days before the party, so that was our main decoration with some pink, red and white balloons. Clara got a kick out of the balloons.

My mom and I made red velvet cupcakes on Friday with white chocolate snowflakes to go on top (super easy). Clara had her own mini cake (I baked it in ramekins) as well. I also decided last minute to make her a special little outfit for her party. She had a cute tulle skirt attached to some leggings, a cupcake appliqued onesie and a party hat. These were all super easy and hardly cost a thing to throw together. The decor was complete when Clara's cousins showed up with a cute snowflake birthday banner they made for her.

We had a great little family party with both sets of Clara's grandparents, Aunt Carol, and Aunt Heather and Uncle Peter and their kids who were in town from California. Clara was definitely the star of the night. After dinner we sang her Happy Birthday (yet again) and helped her blow out her candle. She approached her cake much like she approaches cheerios - shoving handfuls in her mouth until she could hardly chew or swallow. She burrowed a little hole in her cake and was not shy - she definitely enjoyed it! After a few minutes I took it away, afraid that she might overindulge and get sick.

Patiently waiting for her cake

Going to town on the red velvet!

The occasion was well documented.

What was left when I finally took the cake away.

When we all finished cake and hot cocoa, Clara opened her gifts. She got some great new books and toys, but I think her favorite gifts were clothes! She loves clothes and will hardly let you pry a hanger from her fingers.

After gifts we headed to the basement to watch a little movie I put together of Clara's first year. It really just skims the surface of the footage we have of her - she is a very well documented little girl. But it was so fun to look back and see just how much she has grown and changed in the last 12 months.

I have gotten SO many comments about how unfortunate it is that her birthday is on Christmas Eve. People throw out unsolicited suggestions to celebrate her birthday in the summer or have something in January to commemorate the day. But I have to say this was one of my favorite Christmas Eves ever (perhaps only comparing to last year when I had a brand new baby to snuggle). I thought the whole day was just perfect. Clara is a very special little girl and we love her so much. Being her mother is one of the greatest joys in my life!

Christmas Clara

2011-12-15T22:48:00.001-05:00

Today I was wrapping gifts (is it terrible that I wrapped most of Clara's gifts right in front of her?) and I decided to wrap up a box and then put her inside for a little photo shoot. Happily she obliged and I got a few really cute shots. So perfect for our little Christmas baby!

the roaring twenties

2011-12-13T22:47:00.002-05:00

A new decade has begun! Last week I moved (effortlessly) from my twenties to my thirties. As I've thought about the past ten years of my life - my twenties - I can't help but be thankful and a bit amazed at what an action-packed time of life it was.

This is mostly just for me - but here's a little summary of what happened in my twenties:

I....

Studied Art History in England, Scotland, The Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Italy
Served an 18-month LDS mission in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Learned Portuguese
Traveled to Brazil, Czech Republic, Belgium, Spain, Greece, Switzerland, Germany, Holland, England, France, Austria
Biked Vermont with my dad
Lived in Clifton, Virginia; Provo, Utah; Portland, Oregon; New York, New York; Brussels, Belgium; Salt Lake City, Utah
Taught at the MTC in Provo
Graduated from Brigham Young University (debt free!)
Got internships at Nike, Euro RSCG, Mediaedge:cia, Obelis s.a. (managed to get paid or get a stellar job offer out of each one)
Got my first full time job
Fell in love
Bought my first car
Got married in the Salt Lake Temple
Honeymooned in Hawaii
Lost my job
Started my own business
Bought a house
Became a mother to a darling baby girl
Traveled to California, Oregon, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah
Visited lots of National Parks: Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Zion, Arches, Canyonlands
Ran my first (and second and third) half marathon
Went on a cruise to the Bahamas

It's hard to imagine that any other decade will compare, but I hear that life just keeps getting better. So here's to that!

just some thoughts

2011-12-13T22:29:00.000-05:00

Some nights, long after Clara is in bed, Spencer and I will sit at the computer and just look and look at pictures of her. We can't help it; we miss her while she's dreaming in the next room. It's hard to believe that she'll be a whole year old in less than two weeks. I feel like this year has whizzed by with remarkable speed and despite my best efforts to hold on to every moment of her babyhood, our little girl is growing so fast. She's already taken her first steps (only a few) and stands unsupported for longer spells each day.

I look at photos like this one and think, "oh, what happened to that round little face? and those jolly little cheeks?"

May 9, 2011

Her cheeks may have thinned out a bit, but her sweetness is ever growing. Clara's never been an ultra-cuddly baby. She rarely sleeps in our arms and most snuggles are reserved for when she's feeling shy around new faces. But lately as she's grown a bit more attached to her blanket, she'll snuggle right into my shoulder after a nap. I'll lift her out of her crib and she'll gently but deliberately pat my back as she lays her head on my shoulder. It is, perhaps, the sweetest part of my day.

50 Years - Part 1

2011-11-30T10:34:00.001-05:00

This year Spencer's parents celebrated their 50th (!!) wedding anniversary, and as a huge treat to the whole family, decided that a Thanksgiving Disney cruise would be a great way to gather the family to commemorate the event. We just got back on Sunday and I'm happy to report that everyone had a wonderful time.

Sunday
Before even leaving town for the cruise we (Spencer and I and Carol Diane) hosted Spencer's parents for dinner on the day of their actual anniversary. Since it was a Sunday, it was a perfect opportunity to have them over to our house and have a pre-Thanksgiving dinner. We weren't sure that a traditional meal would be available on the ship, so we got our fill of turkey and mashed potatoes before we even left town. :) That night we gifted them with a book that we made, documenting each and every year of their 50 years together. We designed it ourselves and then had it printed by MyPublisher (which I have to say did a lovely job). We're hoping that it's something the whole family can treasure for a long time.

Monday
Don't you just love getting ready for a big trip? All of the last minute laundry, packing, and check lists. Squeezing everything you'll need into carry on luggage because there's no way you're paying $50 for a bag to fly across the country. Finding tiny bottles to house your favorite shampoo or the only body wash that agrees with your baby's sensitive skin. Dropping the cat off at my parents's house with food, scratching post and litter box in tow, errands, snacks for the plane, check, check, check. Getting last minute orders filled and boxed and shipped. Of course, getting a call that our refinance was ready and they wanted to close that night was an added bonus. Needless to say, when my head hit the pillow on Monday night I was relieved and ready for a vacation, if for nothing else than to recover from preparing for it.

Tuesday
On Tuesday, my mom came out to pick us up. We said prayers and then headed off to the airport. It's always a bit exhilarating and at the same time unnerving feeling to drive away from the house for a trip... Do I have everything? Will our house be safe? Will we get to the airport on time? Will Clara do well on the flight? The week before we left, a neighbor's home was broken into in the middle of the day, so we had reason to feel a bit uneasy as we drove off. (Luckily everything was perfectly fine when we got home). We got to the airport in plenty of time and with Clara in her stroller, we were escorted to the front of a long security line. Of course they funneled us into the least functional mag and bag check and by the time we actually got through security the first line was non-existant. :) We met up with the Utah/Colorado portion of the family (everyone but the Richardsons, flying out that same morning from Orange County, CA) and did typical airport activities - took a walk through the terminals, picked up some cinnabon, and got everything ready to pre-board our flight.

Clara and Lulu getting re-aquainted in the airport while we waited to board our flight.

Sleeping in my arms on the flight

Outside Grandma and Grandpa's room at the airport hotel in Orlando

Sadly, the only photo of the three of us on the entire trip.

Orlando Airport at sunset from Bob and Carol's room

The flight there was direct and thankfully uneventful. Clara fell asleep in my arms shortly after take-off and slept for an hour, even enduring a handover to Spencer when my whole right arm fell asleep. Then we had three more hours on the plane to entertain Clara and she did really well. Wiggly for sure, but she did great. We arrived in Orlando, took a tram to another terminal and voila - our hotel for the night. I've never seen a hotel inside an airport, but that's how they do things in Florida. Spencer was sure it was the closest experience we could have to landing on the moon - never setting a foot outside. We had a room looking down into the terminal, but Spencer's parents' room had a verandah to the outside. We got some dinner at Sbarro, window shopped around the terminal and finally met up with the whole family. We swam in the outdoor hotel pool and settled in for the night. Or so we thought. Clara had a rough time getting to sleep. She had missed naps at that point and was exhausted, but just wouldn't sleep. Our steller sleeper frantically cried for nearly three hours trying to get to sleep that night. At that point I was worried that the whole trip would be a nightmare and wondering if it would be worth it while dealing with a very unhappy baby. Finally around 11 she fell asleep for the night.

Wednesday
We woke up, had a quick breakfast at McD's and gathered in the atrium of our hotel/airport terminal. That's where a local news correspondent stopped us and asked about our t-shirts. She decided that we were interesting enough to interview for her story on holiday travel and Bob and Carol were actually on the news that day in Orlando! Here's the clip.

Carol getting interviewed by the news lady

This is what it would be like if we visited on the moon (ask Spencer).

We got in line at the Disney transportation desk, got checked in and boarded a shuttle to Port Canaveral. The whole process was effortless and everything went super smooth. Clara slept for about 30 minutes in my arms on the bus. As we neared the Port you could see our ship, Disney Dream and it was enormous. It is a new ship for Disney that just set sail for the first time this year. We had read a lot about it, and were excited to see all of the features that made it a standout in the industry (even though this was my first cruise and I didn't have anything to compare it to). One thing we were a bit skeptical of was the size. A ship that holds 4,000 passengers along with 1,500 staff might as well be a small city. We went through a quick security check and before we knew it, the staff was announcing/welcoming the Evans family on board, "hailing from California, Colorado and Utah."

Quick nap on the shuttle bus

Here we are in the port terminal with Minnie. I guess people generally wait to board the ship here (like at the airport) but by the time we got there, our number was already boarding. We didn't have to wait at all.

Welcoming the Evans Family on board

On the ship

Now what?

Our "key to the world" cards. These are used to get on and off the ship and pay for any

Immediately, the ship was very impressive. The main entrance has a huge chandelier and the ship had just been all decked out for the holidays. Garlands and lights literally decked the halls and an enormous gingerbread house made the air smell of Christmas. The friendly Disney employees told us that since our rooms were not quite ready, we should go eat (one of the seemingly ongoing activities on board). We headed up the buffet called Cabanas. This was one of the only times on board that I really felt like it was super crowded. I'm pretty sure everyone was at Cabanas and it was difficult to find a place to sit. But there was just about every genre of food you could think of, and we dug right in.

Spencer & Clara on Deck 13 in Port Canaveral, checking out the Carnival cruise ship next to us.

By the Mickey Pool (one of 4 pools on the ship - this one is for kids)

More Deck 13

After lunch we decided to go explore. Spencer, Clara and I headed to Deck 13 - the very highest deck - at the front of the ship. It was deserted and it felt nice to enjoy the sunshine and quiet on our own. We walked around quite a bit and saw the pools and various decks and watched the ship set sail from Deck 13, before heading to our room to get ready for dinner (time to eat again!). Dinner that night was at the Royal Palace - a dining room designed to resemble the castles of Disney Princesses. No detail was left unnoticed to make the experience exactly what Disney wanted it to be for its guests. We were not sure how Clara would do with a 1.5-2 hour 5 course meal, but she did great. She quickly caught on to the fact that cruises are for indulging and ate a LOT the whole time.

Hungry muffin

Since Clara seemed ready for bed by the end of dinner, we decided to forgo the show and get her situated in our room so she could get a good night of sleep. Our requested Pack-n-Play was in our room when we arrived, along with a slipcover for the whole thing that helped darken her little bed a bit. We had an alternative floor plan to the typical long and skinny rooms and it was so perfect for us. It was like they took the long skinny room, cut it in half and put them side by side with a wall in the middle. So we had two windows and we put Clara in the couch area. It was so nice to have her own little area.

Our side of the room

Clara's side of the room

Grandma and Grandpa's room (adjoining)

Once we got to our room, she brightened up and got a second wind, so we headed out to enjoy the balmy air as we sailed for the Bahamas. We put Clara in the bjorn and headed back up to Deck 13 and Clara was all smiles. She normally is pretty sensitive about wind (she doesn't like it and holds her breath in it) but she was giggling the whole time. Spencer was also feeding her some soft serve ice cream, sot that probably didn't hurt either. Everyone was at dinner or a show, so the ship seemed quiet and empty. It was nice to have some quiet time out on the deck together.

The Aquaduck at night - all lit up

Clara and Spencer and soft serve

After we got Clara settled and she thankfully went right to sleep, Spencer volunteered to stay with her so I could go for a run. Deck 4 of the was the only deck that went all the way around the perimeter of the ship and it was a walking/jogging track (with shuffle board courts as well). Two and a half laps on this deck was mile, which really blew my mind - the ship was so big! I ran two miles and it felt so good and easy to run at sea level (literally). By this time we were really moving, so the water was just a few yards below me. I thought it would be a weird sensation to run on a moving ship, but it was actually one of the only times I didn't notice the rocking and swaying of the ship.

This is what Deck 4 looked like in the daytime. You run right under all the lifeboats and pray that they are securely fastened above you.

Our first little towel animal - so cute.

After my quick run I headed back to see how Spencer and Clara were doing. All was well and Spencer was content to read in the room, so I headed back out with Carol Diane to check out the 18+ pool and hot tub area. It was completely empty! We had a couple of people get in the hot tub while we were there, but it was really an empty area. The coolest thing was that the hot tub had a glass floor, and even though it was on deck 12, there was nothing below us and you could see the turquoise water rushing beneath you. It was really neat.

and another new calling...

2011-11-08T14:33:00.000-05:00

Part of the reason I may seem a little stressed about my new calling, is that it came only one week after the Stake Presidency called to meet with us and extended the call for Spencer to be the new Elders' Quorum President. Right after we moved in, Spencer was called to be the secretary. After a few months, he was made the second counselor. Just a few weeks ago, our Bishopric was reorganized and the first counselor was put into the Bishopric - leaving Spencer as the new (but never sustained or set apart) first counselor. Now he's come full circle with his new calling as President.

We knew that change was coming - our whole ward has been ripe for a change and in the past six weeks, every organization except the Primary and Sunday School have been completely reorganized. Working with the youth can be a big time commitment, so I had a close friend say, "maybe they felt like they could snatch you up for a busy calling, since Spencer will probably be released soon." I had to laugh and just say, "we'll see..." since I knew about Spencer's new calling but no one else did.

I'm super proud of him and excited for the chance he'll have to revitalize the quorum. He is such an example to me of selfless service and compassion; always thinking of others. It was really neat to be able to attend Elders Quorum on Sunday and see him get sustained and set apart. I was very impressed with how the Stake handled the whole process. Spencer will be a great President. And as his counselor [by way of covenant] I'm calling for a few more social events. I'm already thinking about a Valentine's couples party...

---

I've been working on my family photo books for 2009 and 2010 and sadly there are some months where I didn't blog a thing. Now I'm far enough away from those months that it really is difficult to remember if anything significant happened that I just forgot to document. Either way, I'm going to try to use this blog more like I used to... even if there are no big events to be recorded, I can at least journal a bit and know [in the future] that months didn't go by without thinking or feeling or doing anything. Ok. That is all.

new calling

2011-10-30T16:00:00.000-04:00

Today I got released as the CTR 7 teacher and called to be the Laurel Advisor. In Primary any lesson in which I let my class act out a story as I told it, or that involved coloring in any way, was a total success. My little class of four girls was full of hugs and sweetness and said the cutest things. Almost every week I'd have a funny little story to tell Spencer on our walk home from church. So you can imagine how I feel; I'm excited, but a bit intimidated by my new responsibilities.

My leaders in YW were just the best and I still keep in touch with many of them. They have definitely set a high standard! I really hope I can have the same kind of positive influence on the lives of the girls in my class. I also wish I had kept more of the handouts and lesson ideas from when I was in young women's because I'm at a total loss. Will I have to bring baked goods to church every week for a lesson to be good, or make cutely crafted scrapbooky bookmarks as handouts?

Before I forget, I need to write down something cute that happened last week in my primary class. I was humming a song and the girls were trying to guess what it was. "Oh! I know!" one exclaimed. "Give Said the Little Man!" I almost laughed out loud. I was humming Give Said the Little Stream. But I'm sure my sweet little student has wondered for some time why the grass grew greener everywhere the little man went.

10 Months

2011-10-26T11:02:00.000-04:00

Where has the time gone? Our sweet Clara is ten months old!

At ten months she...

...is still on the petite side of things. In fact, our pediatrician thinks she'll be off the charts in height and weight by her next visit. But she is healthy and growing.

...loves to sit and play and entertains herself quite well. Her favorite toys are her keys and her puppy.

...is really into books and her favorite right now is Playtime Peekaboo. She loves to be read to, but will also grab a book, turn the pages and babel to herself.

...has become quite vocal. She loves to practice new sounds and says "mama" and "dada" all the time.

...definitely loves her parents and can get very shy around people she's not familiar with. I personally love this, because it's one of the only times she'll snuggle into my chest or shoulder (while flashing a coy little smile to the stranger).

... has been known to cry on occasion when left with a loving relative.

...lights up whenever her daddy walks into the room. She LOVES her daddy and will kick her legs and smile and squeal every time she sees him.

...loves to pat her kitty cat, who is quite tolerant of her sometimes-less-than-gentle antics.

...continues to be a stellar sleeper, sleeping 11-12 hours at night and taking two 2-hour naps during the day (at 9 and 2).

...eats just about everything that we eat (feeds herself) and despite her small size has quite the appetite. She can't shove the cheerios and bananas in her mouth fast enough. She can eat an entire apple or peach for lunch. The only foods she hasn't loved are broccoli and green beans.

...has eight (!) teeth and she knows how to use them.

...is still breastfeeding and loving it.

...enjoys going on walks and running errands with me and sitting in the carts at stores where she can see everything that's going on.

...apparently has a fear of large pumpkins and elevators.

...communicates by nodding her head which is so cute and funny, but quite helpful: "Clara, do you need more cheerios?" head nod yes-yes-yes!

...is not crawling yet, but can definitely get around - she rolls and pivots and pulls up to stand. She also does this thing where she gets up on her toes and balance on her head. So silly!

...LOVES to stand and bounce and she loves to stand on the couch facing the window to see what's happening outside.

...still wears some 3-6 month size clothes, but mostly 6-9 month size.

...is so expressive!

...refuses to sleep at church, even though it's nap time. She loves her bed and does not like to try to sleep elsewhere. As much as daddy would love her to fall asleep in his arms, it's only happened once or twice (ever).

...has a favorite time of day, and it's bedtime! She gets so excited when we do the "jam jam" and put her in her crib.

This little doll has definitely won our hearts, but with a smile like this how could she not?

In the Orchard

2011-10-23T02:02:00.000-04:00

For a long, long time I've been convinced that documenting my family is one of the most important things I can do. I take plenty of photos, but I also have wanted to have some nice family photos each year - you know, where we are all in a pretty place looking somewhat put together. The beautiful fall colors, crisp autumn air and dreamy creamy golden light simply beg for a family photo shoot. I was planning on hiring a professional to take our photos, but in the end I decided we'd just try and do it ourselves this year.

I asked my sweet sister-in-law to help out and she happily obliged (thanks Carol!). The stars seemed to align as I heard of a beautiful [secret] nearby orchard just one day before we had "family photos" scribbled on the calendar. Just over a mile from our house, a generous family with an abundance of land and gorgeous trees laden with impeccable fruit, sweetly let us set up in their apple orchard for a late afternoon of smiles and laughter and clicks of the shutter. We all took turns setting up the shots, adjusting the camera settings, trying to get Clara to smile, and snapping the photos; it was definitely a collaborative effort. Here's a tiny peek at a few favorites.

On a Walk

2011-08-24T12:10:00.000-04:00

It's crazy how much these little people grow in such a short period of time. In eight months we've gone from this:

January 15, 2011 - Clara's First Walk

to this:

August 23, 2011 - Yesterday's Morning Walk

I keep waiting for time to stop and her to stay this way forever, but she just keeps changing!

What a Hoot

2011-08-01T11:00:00.002-04:00

Every summer we enjoy our yard and the mature trees in the back of our house. But this summer we had the added bonus of some new neighbors - a family of owls has taken up residence in a tree in the backyard! We love going out to look for them in the evenings and have spotted four owls living up in the tree. From a bit of internet research we're fairly certain that they are Great Horned Owls (the most common in Utah). Apparently Great Horned Owls mate for life, which makes it all the sweeter when we see two of them nuzzling together on a branch. They are quite petite and I really want to just climb up in the tree and get one down so we can pet and snuggle it. They look like little fluff balls with robotic necks and big eyes. We've gotten a few photos of them on different occasions, but it can be difficult to capture them in the dusky light.

Seven Months

2011-07-27T13:05:00.001-04:00

Clara turned seven months old on Pioneer Day. Since Pioneer Day was observed on July 25th this year, I felt okay about taking her seven month pictures on the 25th as well. This little seven month old (still can't believe that!) can sit pretty well on her own, but definitely loves to lay down and roll, pivot and turn to get where she wants to go. She also still enjoys standing. Clara keeps sleeping great and no one can believe it when I say she's down for the night at 7:00 (and usually not up again for about 12 hours). She loves eating her solid food (not picky at all so far), playing with her [stuffed] puppy and knows two signs (milk and dog). She loves to giggle and coo and has a bright smile that fills our home with sunshine. We just love our sweet Clara Jane!

iPhoto Faces

2011-07-11T12:34:00.000-04:00

iPhoto has a facial recognition feature that usually works pretty well. You tag faces in your photos as you go, and pretty soon, iPhoto has a good idea of who each person is in any given photo.

Apparently I've taught iPhoto that anything small and cute that Spencer is holding must be Clara.

Puppy Love

2011-07-10T17:12:00.006-04:00

While my sisters were in town with their kids and my parents' stash of toys was strewn around their house, I found a cute old stuffed animal of mine. I reclaimed it and took it home for Clara. She immediately fell in love! This little pup can make her giggle and smile, and her daddy does all the perfect puppy sounds to solicit her little squeal.

All Wrapped Up

2011-07-08T13:31:00.002-04:00

Is there anything sweeter than a freshly bathed baby wrapped in a towel?

Maybe, but I can't think of what it could be.

Harmon's Lagoon Day

2011-07-08T12:25:00.001-04:00

For the past four years, we've been beneficiaries of my dad's employment at Harmon's. More specifically, we've been able to enjoy their annual lagoon day for employees and their families! In addition to discounted tickets, Harmon's rents out several pavillions for two days each summer where unlimited soda, popcorn, watermelon, cotton candy, popsicles, creamies, and brownies are available on a come-on-in-and-take-what-you-want basis throughout the entire day. Hot dogs, brats and burgers are available for purchase as well, but for a very nominal fee (50 cents to $2). It's so nice not to have to worry about bringing your own food or paying ridiculous amusement park prices for lunch and dinner.

We've made it a Madsen family tradition to attend Lagoon Day, and this year it was the capstone to our long weekend family reunion at Bear Lake and Fourth of July festivities. Conveniently, Harmon's Lagoon Day falls a day or two after the 4th.

Clara was a trooper! She napped and smiled the day away in her stroller.

Harrison, Noah, and Little Spencer map out their day

Olivia and Emma share a ride on the Baby Boats

Grandma Margie keeps Clara company while I go on a few rides myself

Clara's Fan Club

2011-07-07T21:35:00.000-04:00

We are so blessed to have family nearby. Since having Clara, we have suddenly become quite popular and our local family loves to visit all the time. It is a new experience for us, as well as for [both sets of] our parents and [Aunt] Carol to be a short drive away from a sweet new little family member. I grew up typically seeing grandparents and other extended family for only a week or two in the summer, so this will be a totally different experience for Clara. Going a week without seeing all four grandparents and Aunt Carol is a rarity! Not to mention the Great Grandmas, second cousins, and Great Aunts and Uncles we see frequently. We are thankful that she is surrounded by so many who love her so much and are wonderful influences in her life.

Grandma Carol reading Clara a story

Grandpa Bob and Grandma Carol take a look at a book with Clara

Grandpa Brent heading out with Clara (back in Feb)

Grandma Margie hanging out with Clara at Lagoon

Bear Lake Weekend

2011-07-06T13:04:00.001-04:00

My parents decided it was time that our family have an "official" family reunion. So they went all out and rented a beautiful cabin at Bear Lake. We all met up on Thursday evening, got settled and enjoyed dinner together. We played cards late into the evening and then headed to bed.

On Friday we met up with my Uncle Richard and Renae at a beach on the Idaho side of the lake. My uncle owns a boat, so we were all able to go out on it and enjoy the lake. Because of the record snowfall and spring runoff this year, the water level was up about 11 feet from last year. Driving along the perimeter of the lake, there were treetops poking out from 10-20 feet from the shore. Luckily there was still plenty of beach and nearly 100 yards of super shallow water for the kids to enjoy. The little kids busied themselves, splashing and digging, while groups of 8 took turns on the boat. When we arrived at the beach, Clara was happy and fed, so Spencer and I decided to take the first turn on the boat. We also wanted to water ski and the water is the calmest in the morning.

We all had a turn to ski or ride the tube, but I only had my flip, not my camera -- so no photos. I was pretty pleased that I was able to remember how to water ski since it had been 15 years since my first and last water skiing trip. Luckily, I got up on my first attempt. If I hadn't, I'm not sure I would have been patient enough with myself to try for very long. Did I mention the water was freezing? It was about 64 degrees. It honestly took my breath away when I jumped into the lake.

Friday and Saturday were pretty similar - beach time, boat rides, a few sunburns, kite flying, bike rides, lots of good food, family time, raspberry shakes, pool, ping pong, marshmallow roasting, and movies back at the cabin. We had a great time! Thanks again mom and dad!

Our sweet little sailor

Olivia and Sam

Grandma and Grandpa brought peas from their garden - yum!

Clara went for a little dip in the lake

Captain Noah

Emma in her own little tub she created in the sand

Big Spencer, Little Spencer

Uncle Richard and the cool rainbow kite (which sadly met a watery grave)

Clara took a little nap in the shade and comfort of Daddy's lap

Noah and Emma digging together

S'mores at the cabin firepit

Evans Family Photo (and matching sandals to boot!)

Those cheeks are just so kissable - who can resist!?

Day 2 hanging out on the beach

Olivia and Emma

Olivia, the fashionista (Clara benefits greatly from Livi's great sense of style)

Family Photo on the Beach - unfortunately Clara was napping and Nathan and Becky were in SLC taking it easy after an unexpected surgery the day before

Clara and Olivia

Noah and Harrison enjoying cones at Le Beau's

4th of July

2011-07-05T11:12:00.000-04:00

The 4th of July happened to be right in the middle of the Madsen Family Reunion (just our family - not the big extended family from the July reunion) - after Bear Lake and before Lagoon, so everyone was still in town and could celebrate together.

We headed to Kaysville to watch the parade. Parades are always fun, and the kids loved snatching up candy that was thrown our way. A few years ago my dad participated in creating the winning float for the parade (and was the one to come up with the winning theme, "Neighbors helping Neighbors" to represent their stake) so of course none of the floats quite measured up this year. ;) But it was still fun to participate in the festivities and enjoy a humid morning together to kick start the holiday.

Waiting for the parade to start

Patriotic Cousins - Rachel and Clara (oldest and youngest)

In the afternoon we had an all-american meal of fried chicken, mac and cheese, potato salad and watermelon from the new Harmon's near my parents' house. We headed home before the fireworks began, but it was still a fun day to remember the great country we live in!

Garage Sale

2011-06-26T10:48:00.000-04:00

When Mollie came to town we decided to have a yard sale. Mollie is a great garage saler, my mom had lots of stuff to get rid of, and my house is in a great location for such an event. I also had some things to sell, so it worked out great. Mollie and I spent several days earlier in the week sorting and pricing all of our things, then on Saturday morning we got up bright and early to get the sale going. My mom made some amazing cupcakes and lemonade for Harrison to sell and he was thrilled at the end of the day to have earned quite a bit of money for himself. It was a lot of work, but we were able to get rid of a lot of stuff and make some money too. When we called it a day we loaded all the remaning stuff into my mom's SUV to be hauled off for donation. Here are a few photos from the day.

Mom and Mollie enjoying some shade

Harrison with his Cupcake/Pretzel/Lemonade Stand

Getting tired...

Spencer watched Clara inside while I worked the yard sale outside

I thought this was so cute - when Harrison ran out of lemonade, he made a little "sold out" sign

Love at First Bite

2011-06-25T22:05:00.000-04:00

Clara tried her first solid food the day before she turned six months old. She's been interested in food for a while, but I definitely wanted to hold off until she hit the six month mark. I knew she was getting all the nutrients she needed from breastmilk, and I wasn't really eager to give up the ease of exclusively breastfeeding (and the not-so-smelly diapers that go with it). Plus, I was in a bit of denial about her growing up too fast. Nevertheless, it was time. Clara's first food was mashed avocado. I thinned it out a bit for her, and she gobbled it right up.

She seemed to love it and know just what to do - she opened wide as each spoonful was brought to her mouth, and swallowed with ease. After a bit of instruction during her first meal, she no longer tries to grab for the spoon or put her hands in her mouth while eating. Since her first meal, we've added brown rice, barley, banana and peas to her menu and she's enjoyed them all!

Father's Day

2011-06-20T21:55:00.000-04:00

Clara's very lucky to have a great father. When I look at the thousands of photos we have of Clara, many of my favorites are of she and her daddy together: on a walk or a hike, snuggling, reading a story together, playing with the kitty, exploring the yard. I feel pretty confident in saying that coming home to see Clara at the end of a long work day is a daily highlight for Spencer. They both enjoy each other immensely. For Father's Day, Clara insisted that we make Spencer breakfast in bed. She also wanted to get him a 10 pack of Butterfingers that he wouldn't even have to share, and a chimney for the grill so we can continue to enjoy daddy's delicious charcoal grilling skills without the wait (or lighter fluid!).

Madsen Family Reunion

2011-06-20T08:55:00.030-04:00

In Mid-June, we attended the extended Madsen Family Reunion. It's a gathering of my Grandpa Glen Madsen's siblings (only one surviving) and their posterity. Admittedly, I don't know much of the family beyond my first cousins, aunts and uncles, but it was still nice to get together and meet some other family members as well. This year my dad was in charge of organizing the event. The good thing about being in charge is getting to choose the venue - he chose to host the reunion at Nicholl's Park in Kaysville, which is only about a mile from their home. It was great to see cousins, aunts and uncles and my Grandma Betty. We enjoyed a beautiful day in the park, had lunch, and took Clara to the park for the first time. She seemed to enjoy the swing and I can see why some parents swear by them for their babies - she nearly fell asleep on her first go!

Spencer tries Clara's hat on for size

First Swing!

Week 23 Outtake

2011-06-08T12:42:00.001-04:00

5 Month Photos and Thoughts

2011-06-07T14:03:00.001-04:00

{written 6/7/11}

It's 6:30 on Friday morning. The sun is already shining brightly and pouring into the house through the living room windows. Aren't these early mornings wonderful in the spring/summer? Also, having your baby's room on the west side of the house is wonderful. Except for in the evenings when the baby is in bed by 7:00 but the sun stays out partying until 9:30 or so. But I suppose that is why they invented blackout fabric (also wonderful).

I was at a baby shower last night, chatting it up with some of my favorite friends in the neighborhood. We somehow got to talking about babies (imagine that). One friend I was talking with has a baby who is ten days older than Clara, so it's been fun to kind of fun to go through the same things at the same times. We were talking about how our babies are approaching the six month mark (!!!) and she kept saying how 6-12 months is her favorite age for a baby. I kept thinking, "Really? Because it's hard to imagine things being any more awesome than they already are." Then she was commenting about how it is so fun when you have more than one child, to watch them play together and enjoy life with each other. So apparently I have some things to look forward to! (this is not an announcement)

Little Clara continues to be the sunshine in my life. She has the sweetest little giggle and lights up with a smile whenever I can lock her gaze. Everyone around me is constantly commenting on what a good baby she is. I've been around other babies enough to know that this is true! I realize that she's spoiling me as a mother and I'm just trying to soak in all of her goodness and appreciate each moment. Almost every night within an hour of putting her to bed, Spencer asks if we can go wake her up. It's the sweetest thing. Sometimes we do get her up, just to snuggle. We're not trying to make a habit of it, but we know her babyhood will be so fleeting. When we don't scoop her up for a snuggle (and even when we do) she sleeps soundly for 10-12.5 hours at night.

Here are some updates on the babe: She loves having her gums (no teeth yet) brushed before bed. She loves standing up and has really strong (but short!) little legs. She does acrobatic moves in her crib while she sleeps; I put her down on her back, but often find her on her tummy, side, or pushed up close to the bars of her crib when she wakes. She is easily entertained and her favorite toys are a few plastic links strung together, her oball, and her teething rings (usually not all at once). We go on a walk each morning before her first nap and she seems to really enjoy it! I still have her stroller in the parent-facing orientation most of the time so I can watch all of her cute little expressions as we go. When she meets new people and they really make an effort to make her laugh or smile she gives them a blank stare, then looks up at me, with her "is this ok, mom?" look. It is surprising to me just how many people will stop us in the grocery store or on a walk to take a peek at her or comment on her cuteness or her beautiful eyes. I guess I've just never been one of those people, but if other people were toting around babies as cute as Clara, I guess I might be. ;)

Artisan Bread in Five

2011-06-03T21:49:00.000-04:00

Over the past year or so, I've seen various references to a book called Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I read quite a few food blogs, and every mention of it was a rave review, but also alluded to some special secret that you'd have to buy the book to find out. I was a little intrigued and a little annoyed. But when I saw yet another blogger raving about the bread they had just made (this time not a food blogger) using the books' trick, I decided to look it up. Turns out the authors have a blog of their own where they have published the master recipe. I've made bread and homemade pizza crust before, but this bread is by far the easiest I've tried. Also probably the tastiest. And definitely the prettiest.

I've still been wanting to get the book (or at least check it out from the library), but from what I can tell, it's filled with variations on the common recipe theme: mix the very simple ingredient list, let the dough sit, refrigerate, and bake whenever you need fresh bread. The dough from the master recipe can sit in the fridge for up to two weeks. The only problem with baking bread so pretty and good is that I eat way too much of it... But I'm also excited to try the brioche dough and use it for some sweeter creations.

The Whole Bowl

2011-05-18T11:53:00.005-04:00

Whenever I am in Portland, I have to get a bowl of The Whole Bowl. I first heard about The Whole Bowl when I worked at Euro RSCG for a summer internship. It was a food cart in the Pearl District, and it was only open a few days a week for lunch. After my first experience, I was hooked! One of my favorite things was to grab a bowl and head to the nearest park to watch locals play bocce on my lunch hour. Spencer and I have visited Portland twice together. On the first trip I insisted that he try The Whole Bowl, on the second, it was [one of] our top priority[s] for the trip.

So, what is in The Whole Bowl that makes it so delicious? Just by looking at a bowl, you can tell what 95% of the ingredients are: brown rice, black and red beans, fresh avocado, salsa, olives (none for me), cheddar, cilantro, sour cream (I add this, but I don't think it's part of the original recipe) and Tali Sauce. You've probably never heard of Tali Sauce. That's because it's a completely inexplicable and highly addictive substance with a top secret recipe that's impossible to find, even on the interwebs (at least until recently). This is quite a long post about something as mundane as rice and beans, but the exciting news is, I combined a few recipes I found and was able to create something pretty close to Tali Sauce. After Spencer returned from one of his business trips earlier this year I surprised him with a bowl.

And just in case I forget (or if you want to try it yourself) here's the Tali Sauce recipe:

1/4 C olive oil
1/4 C cashews
Juice from 1.5 large lemons
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp (heaping) whole grain mustard
1/2 C garbonzo beans
1/4 C (heaping) nutritional yeast (the kind in flakes - found at health food stores)
1/4 C water
1/4 tsp turmeric1/2 tsp curry powder

1 sprinkle of dried basil

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper1 pinch of salt

Blend everything in a food processor until super smooth. Store in the fridge!

Mother's Day

2011-05-09T17:37:00.000-04:00

This year was my first official Mother's Day. I was awakened at 3:00 in the morning by the cries of my sweet Clara who otherwise sleeps through the night. She was up for good. Her cries were punctuated by coughing fits from Spencer who was fighting a terrible cold. Clara lost her breakfast all over the front of my dress minutes before I headed out to church alone so I could teach primary. I came home and spent the afternoon preparing a meal for guests while tending to my daughter and sick husband.

It probably doesn't sound ideal. No breakfast in bed, fancy gifts, or day off from my typical responsibilities. But at the end of the day, I think everything was just right. I got to spend the day being a mother. And that is what I've always wanted.

P.S. Spencer, Clara, if you're reading this... this doesn't mean you're off the hook next year. :)

St. George

2011-05-06T18:06:00.000-04:00

As a celebration that busy season was over, we took a little trip down to St. George for a long weekend. It was our first road trip with Clara and I was a little nervous when Spencer suggested going the "back way" (for maximum railroad exposure) as it takes a few hours more than the already-mildly-daunting 5 hour trek on I-15. Figuring that it would be easier to pull off the road just about anywhere to feed or change Clara, I gave the thumbs up and off we went. I guess I wasn't too surprised, but Clara did great! She was totally content in her car seat, whether sleeping or just looking around.

All packed and ready to hit the road!

We stopped twice on the way down. I have officially mastered the art of changing a diaper on the front seat of a car. :)

Spencer multi-tasking: holding Clara, entertaining her with a toy, checking his email and driving with his knees. :) This is during our first stop on the way down.

Hanging out by the pool protected from the wind and sun by her blanket.

While in St. George, we relaxed in the condo, went on a few drives, ate at Bear Paw Cafe, watched movies and attempted a hike. I say attempted because we didn't last long on the trail. It was super windy the whole time we were down there, and Clara still has that infant reflex where she holds her breath in the wind. In order to keep the oxygen flowing, we headed back prematurely.

Clara's first (short) hike.

Easter

2011-05-04T16:07:00.001-04:00

We had a wonderful Easter! Clara and I stayed home from church (there is a measles outbreak in our neighborhood, it's SUPER contagious, and babies don't get their first immunization until they are 12-15 months) but it was still a lovely day. The Easter Bunny came and brought some fun things for Clara. We took a few photos in the sunshine by our newly blossoming tulips and spent the afternoon enjoying a wonderful meal at Spencer's parents house.

It's interesting how holidays are more fun and even more meaningful as our family grows. Of course it's fun to start more traditions, but this year it also felt more significant than ever to reflect on the atonement and resurrection in a new light. I've always thought of Easter as being most significant to those who have experienced tragic loss. No doubt, the knowledge that death is not the end brings great comfort to anyone who has lost a loved one. This year Christ's resurrection has become more personally relevant to me as my family has grown and my life continues to fill with people I love. I have a wonderful husband and darling daughter that mean so much to me. I guess I have realized that even more than loss, love makes the resurrection meaningful. It is such a blessing to know that because of the Savior our little family can be together forever. No matter what.

Just Because

2011-04-20T13:56:00.002-04:00

Part of Your History #5

2011-04-17T12:02:00.000-04:00

One year ago today, I stood with disbelief and blurry tear-filled eyes as I stared down at the test in my hands. A single word on its tiny digital screen changed everything: PREGNANT.

Hannah - "For This Child I Prayed" by Elspeth Young

Our journey to have baby #1 did not happen as quickly or as easily as I thought or hoped it would. When Spencer and I first got married, we determined when we thought we wanted to have our first baby and each one after that. But clearly we should have known better than to think that we could plan things out and have them happen exactly as we hoped and anticipated. For months we tried and (I) underwent tests, medications, and medical procedures to try to help us have a child. During that time I mostly was able to remain positive about things and felt strongly that despite our roadblocks, children would still come into our family -- it was just a matter of how and when. Spencer and I prayed daily and fasted on several occasions that we would be blessed with children.

Although the period of longing for a baby now seems like a distant, blurry memory, I remember one day quite clearly. It was a Sunday and I was teaching the Sunday School lesson on Abraham and Isaac. A large part of the lesson focused on Abraham and Sarah, and the years that they waited for a blessing of their own child. They came up with their own ideas -- on several occasions -- of how this child would come into their family, doubting that it could happen on its own without their creative intervention. Eventually Isaac was born to his parents in their old age. I wondered why the Lord told them about this son so far in advance of his coming. Was it to prepare them? To test their faith? Their patience? Perhaps it was for all of these reasons. But there was another important lesson here too -- they had to wait so they could truly see the Lord's hand in their life. What could otherwise have been a rather commonplace event took years for them to accomplish.

It's certainly not an everyday event for anyone to have a child, but in the midst of bearing what seemed to be one of life's heavier crosses, I became grateful for the chance to really involve the Lord in the process. The times that we have to truly wait on the Lord after doing all that we can do are when we can often feel the most desperate. But they are also the times when we can see the most clearly that He is over all - mindful of our most basic needs and our deepest desires. God is in His heaven and miracles abound; sometimes it just takes some desperation -- and patience -- to see them.

Old Enough to Want to Know You Better

2011-04-07T17:24:00.000-04:00

Earlier today I was reading an old gchat conversation between my sister and I, where we were discussing what to name the baby she was pregnant with at the time. The babe was born and named Olivia Grace. Reading the old conversation made me curious about the first time I had thought of the name Clara.

Our baby girl was named after Spencer's grandma, Clara Lucile Worthen Cameron. I remember that Spencer and I discussed it as a name we liked even while we were dating (how bold of us to discuss baby names when we weren't even engaged!) and we always liked the idea of having a Clara and a Charlie. But did I like the name before that? Maybe my gmail history would provide some clues....

I searched 'Clara' in my gmail account and found my way back to the very first mention of it: a song I had forwarded to a friend on July 18, 2006. A song named Clara! A song I had once loved, but since forgotten, in the haze of my comparatively music-less life. How could I have forgotten a discovery such as this? Or the fact that singing this song to me, apparently, was a way to my heart as recently as 2007? Without further ado, I bring you Bart Davenport singing Clara (live! on a rooftop!). I'm happy that my baby has a cool song of her very own.

Adventures in Cloth

2011-03-29T16:34:00.002-04:00

This whole post is about cloth diapers - just fair warning.

Last Friday our cloth diaper trial from Jillian's Drawers arrived.

Wait, what? You didn't know I was a hippie tree-hugging crazy? Actually, I'm not. Turns out cloth diapers have come a long way since the last time you probably heard anything about them. Now they are super cute and very easy to use. I honestly never would have even thought about cloth diapers until I read about them (on a blog by people I otherwise consider normal) while pregnant that made me curious. Then of course I started researching things and discovered that it might be a viable option for our family. Pro-cloth diapering websites make all kinds of claims about how wonderful they are. Some of these things are true, some are a little exaggerated. But for me, the real pros outweighed the cons enough to at least give them a try.

Here are some things I read about cloth diapers before using them, along with how I really feel:

1. Cloth diapers are just as easy as disposables
Let's be honest. What could be easier than just throwing away a dirty diaper? However, I do think that cloth diapers are probably easier than you think. Cloth diapers are now designed just like disposables (stretch tabs, elastic around the legs and back, velcro or snap closures, etc) so they are just as easy to change. But there is a *little* extra work involved because you do have to wash them. But so far that hasn't been discouraging - just another load of laundry every few days.

2. Cloth diapers can save you thousands of dollars
Thousands, really? It sounded like a lot to me too. I didn't expect to ever spend thousands on diapers, so I didn't know I could save thousands. If you buy diapers at a regular price at the grocery store, then you are crazy. They are so expensive. But I think that most moms are smart and use coupons, shop at Costco or use Amazon Mom. You can find significant savings there. But you'll still save a lot of money using cloth diapers instead. Using disposables (from amazon or Costco), I figure the average baby's diapers would cost about $40 a month. That's $480 a year and $1,200 for 2.5 years (hopeful potty-training age!). If it takes your kid a little longer to catch on to using the bathroom you could be talking about more than $1400. And that's just for one baby. You want 3-4 kids, you're talking about $5,000+ just for diapers. And that doesn't include wipes, rash cream or any special bags for whatever fancy diaper pail you are using. Cloth diapers run the gamut - there are super economical choices and super high-end choices. But honestly, you can cloth diaper a baby from 10 lbs to potty training for anywhere between $150 (for the more economical options) and $450 (for the nicer high end fancy diapers). And lots of diapers will last for more than one child. Of course, you will use a little more water and electricity washing and drying them 2-3 times a week, but I still don't think your costs in those areas will add up enough to NOT save you money. When I realized all of this, it became my main motivation for exploring cloth diapers. Not that we can't afford to use disposables, but why throw our money away? If we ended up liking cloth diapers, it could be a great way to save a little more money for our kids to go to college or have a fun family trip or buy something cool for the house.

3. Cloth diapers are better for the environment
Blah, blah, blah. It depends on what you read and who you talk to. Disposables fill the landfills, cloth uses more water. In the end, this has very little to do with my reasons and I am not an environmental expert so I can't really tell you which has a more adverse effect.

4. Cloth diapers are more gentle on your baby's skin
Oh my goodness! These diapers are seriously so soft and cushy. Love. One of the funny things I read while researching things was, "think about it - would you rather have cloth underwear or paper underwear?" It made me laugh. But seriously, these diapers are so soft. Also, while I was pregnant a huge news story came out about Pampers Dry Max diapers giving babies chemical burns. Yikes! That said, Clara has used a lot of Pampers for the first 12 weeks and never had more than a tiny bit of redness. I do like the idea of putting soft cloth against my baby rather than strange gel-beading chemicals.

There are lots of other claims that I don't have enough experience with to form an opinion, but if we stick with cloth for good I hope they are true! Here are a few: Cloth diapers leak less than disposables, cloth diapers minimize diaper rash, cloth diapered babies potty train sooner.

Ok, so lots of good things about cloth diapers, right? I was pretty excited when we got our trial pack (they send you one each of the most popular brands - brand new - you use them for 21 days like they are your own (including washing and drying them) and then send them back. It costs $10). There are so many fun colors and patterns and the interior fabrics are so super soft. The verdict? I really like them so far. Cleaning them is not much of a sacrifice - I already do laundry all the time - and I think they are super cute.

The only thing I don't love about them right now is the extra bulk. I'm told this gets better as babies get bigger. I'm sure when it's summer time and Clara's running around in nothing but a diaper, she'll have the cutest little fluffy bum on the block. But with onesies, pants, or rompers on right now, she's definitely got some less than flattering extra bulk going on. But really, she's a baby. Who cares, right?

Ok, seriously. That was much longer than I thought it would be. If you want to know more, I've researched this topic to death. I'm sure I could answer your questions.

Clara's Blessing

2011-03-29T13:36:00.001-04:00

March 20th was the first day of spring. Our daffodils finally peeked out from their eager buds, a fresh blanket of snow coated the earth, and our sweet baby girl received her first special blessing from her father.

Before Clara was born, I worked on several fun sewing projects for her, but I knew that one of the most special would be made after her arrival. Even though there are lots of beautiful christening gowns out there, I really wanted to make Clara's dress. I searched for the most basic dress pattern I could find and then altered it to get exactly what I wanted. Super long and lacy is traditional, but not really my style. I didn't want a lot of embellishment or extra length; I didn't want her to get lost in a cloud of a dress. :) My wish list included three things: beautiful fabric, slightly puffed sleeves, and pin tucks. With my mom's help, we achieved all three.

Of course, the event itself was certainly more special than the dress she wore. Spencer gave Clara a sweet and perfect blessing.

After the blessing, we gathered in our home for brunch with all of our great family that came for the special day. Clara was pretty tuckered out and needed a nap right away. I was a little sad that she couldn't spend more time with her adoring fans (or get photos with them!). We had lots of delicious and beautiful food and it was so nice to have our house full of people we love.

When the Bough Breaks

2011-03-08T20:11:00.036-05:00

Front porch light, check. Breezeway lights, check. Back door light, check. Locks -- check, check, check. I looked out the window as heavy snow fell Monday night and huge flakes swirled fast and furious, piling on the ground. Then, after checking on Clara, I headed to bed.

Spencer was out of town for the week, making it a little more unsettling than usual when I heard strange noises outside during Clara's 3 am feeding. I wondered if there was someone in the backyard, but the last thing I wanted to do was look and find out. Not wanting to scare myself, I chalked it up to icicles falling off the gutters and headed back to bed when Clara was done.

Morning came with blue skies and sunshine and 15 plus inches of snow on the ground. I headed out to shovel and immediately noticed that something wasn't right. Sure enough, our two large backyard trees had each broken under the weight of the snow.

It was just too much for them to bear.

I was nervous for the large branch resting on the house right over the dining room, and heartbroken at the thought of losing these trees - even if it were just a branch at a time. It might sound strange, but these trees were part of what I loved about this house. They each had a branch for a swing and one seemed like it would be a perfect treehouse tree someday.

Thankfully my dad came over after work with his chain saw and relieved the trees of their sagging limbs, and our home of any potential danger. So far we haven't realized any significant damage from the incident, other than to the trees themselves. Needless to say, I am ready for spring.

Two Months.

2011-03-01T14:07:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday Clara turned two months old! We celebrated by going to the doctor on Friday for a check up and some shots. I really want to get a photo of her on the baby scale at the doctor's office, because she just chills out there when I lay her down and it's so cute, but I don't want the doctors or nurses to think I'm crazy/irresponsible.

We have a great pediatrician and nurse whom I love, and Clara warms right up to them as well. Plus, they know just what to say to a mom, "Oh, she is so beautiful!" or "What a good baby!" -- you know, things like that (that are all true). I love going to the doctor to see how much she has grown, but it was very hard to watch her get those shots. She drank the rotavirus vaccine like it was koolaid - the nurse commented that she'd never seen a 2 month old take it without a fuss. Then came the shots - three of them! Thankfully the nurse was FAST, but of course Clara started crying as soon as the first needle went in. She cried for a few minutes, then calmed down after we snuggled for a while, and fell asleep in her car seat on our way out. She slept for almost four hours!!

Her personality is really starting to emerge and she has so many funny and cute expressions. She's cooing and smiling so much and is just such a happy baby. I've noticed in the past few days that she can get a little impatient at times - like when she's hungry - but it could just be some residual fussiness from her shots. Plus, who can complain when she's slept for 7.5-8 hours straight the past two nights?

We got all of her measurements and stats from the doctor and I was a little surprised. I knew she wasn't getting super chunky, but I thought for sure she was getting taller/longer. She weighed in at 10 lbs 10.5 oz (45th percentile) and measured 21.6 inches (20th percentile). Looks like we have a petite little girl -- but I know things can change fast too! Thankfully her head circumference is average, which makes me wonder about some of the headbands we have that are so tiny...maybe we'll keep them for dolls?

8 weeks!

2011-02-18T16:43:00.001-05:00

Wow, it's hard to believe that Clara has been with us for eight weeks. It's one of those things -- it's gone so fast, but at the same time it's hard to imagine life without her! She is such a good and happy baby. We love her so much and feel so blessed to have her in our family.

I have been trying to stay on top of all of the photos we take of her. With all things digital we end up taking hundreds (if not thousands) of photos and videos of her, so it's quite the task to make sure they all get put on the computer, backed up, and sorted. I try to flag favorites every week or so, in hopes that the task of printing them and eventually making some sort of baby book won't be too overwhelming.

Here is one of my favorite videos of her from when we were still in the hospital. It's actually Christmas and she is one day old. Watch for the little chin quiver after the first hiccup. It completely melts my heart.

And the Mother of the Year Award Goes To...

2011-02-18T16:02:00.001-05:00

Some lessons you learn the hard way. At least now I'll never forget to take her headband off before another nap.

Learning to Snap

2011-02-02T19:34:00.000-05:00

We're hoping she gets it down by the time she hits 2 months.

Then we'll move on to tying her own shoes.

Can You Find the Baby?

2011-01-28T14:21:00.001-05:00

Clara Clara Bo Bera

2011-01-14T11:33:00.001-05:00

I think it is inevitable that once you have children your blog begins to focus more on them. Especially if you haven't left the house in three weeks except for a few trips to the pediatrician... It's hard with a winter baby to feel like you can go anywhere without exposing your child to a cold or flu that could land them in the hospital. In fact, with all the rampant germs and RSV swirling around this time of year, our pediatrician recommended keeping our little one home from church for 3-4 months. Months! I was pretty surprised. Anyway, all of this is my way of saying you can expect to see a lot more photos of Clara on here than anything else.

I'm working on a photo project of Clara which will be updated weekly. You can check it out here. Also, our over-achieving sweetheart rolled over yesterday (at just one day shy of three weeks old).

Twas Two Nights Before Christmas (or Twas the Night Before Clara)

2010-12-31T17:02:00.009-05:00

Our sweet baby girl is one week old today! I can hardly believe all that has happened in the past week - it has been a blur and a whirlwind, but life is sweet and wonderful. We couldn't be more happy or feel more blessed.

I wrote this little (ok, long) poem to tell Clara's birth story. There are definitely some details I left out -- like the fact that even after 24 hours of building contractions, there was never a true "this is it" moment. At one point in the evening, a contraction hurt so much it made me cry (I had three of those throughout the day) and I told Spencer we should get ready to go, but I still wasn't super sure. I was never really confident that I was progressing, or that we needed to go to the hospital. Even after we arrived at the hospital, we sat in the car for several minutes as I debated if we really needed to go in (I really didn't want to get sent home). I also didn't mention that after we packed up the car, we delivered Christmas cookies to neighbors on the way to the hospital. There was no way that the six dozen cookies I made at nine months pregnant were going to go to waste, even if it meant I had to sit in the car through some pretty intense contractions while Spencer delivered them to our neighbors. I will write a more traditional birth story out at some point which may or may not show up here. But for now, please enjoy!

Twas two nights before Christmas, and all through the house
Eagerness built, as I called for my spouse
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care
But the space neath tree empty; no presents found there

"Bring your iPhone" I yelped in a weary worn struggle,
Then fell in a chair; the cat wanting to snuggle
In moments he came; my husband appeared
And handed phone over as he quietly cheered

Finding the app, installed days before
"contraction counter" timed as I slumped on the floor
Then rising in pain between a scream and a cry
I heaved and wrenched, then melted to sigh

Near 24 hours had passed of labor early yet true,

As contractions inched closer and intensity grew

On birth ball, on bed, on foot and in tub,
On trying things naturally, aye there's the rub

Could this be the night of the birth of our first?

Another contraction; one of the worst
"This is it," I managed as I fell in a sag,
"Grab the computer, the iPod, the camera, and bag"

Then off to the hospital we drove in a dash
The fog thick and heavy as we avoided a crash
At arrival and check-in contractions slowed to a halt
"They'll think I'm a fool, and not worth my salt"

Soon we were admitted, to Triage Room three,

As monitors checked my veracity

One quick check and the nurse soon was saying,

"Oh look at your progress! You're a five and you're staying!"

Admitted, at once the phone calls began,

"We're here, and we're having her - at least that's the plan!"

Soon grandmas and grandpas and siblings arrived

So much excitement, and sleep soon deprived

"This isn't so bad" was my constant refrain

But the nurses encouraged an epidural just the same

When news of a doc breaking water soon came

I consented and ne'er felt a twinge of shame

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear

The anesthesiologist and all of his gear
A couple of pricks and the numbness set in
The pain mostly gone, my face in a grin

When all of a sudden a warmth filled the bed,

My body beat doc to it, and broke my own water instead

Another quick check and I was in heaven

"You go girl," said the nurse, "hon, you're a seven!"

As deep pressure mounted, I gave a shout of hooray!

I'd meet my sweet girl soon; time to push, no delay!
Then chin to chest and count to ten,
Once, and twice, again and again

I curled around baby each time with great strain

As I pushed and I tried to composure maintain

Three hours of pushing only found the babe stuck

Neath a bone in my pelvis, and each push brought no luck

Finally my doctor was called to come in

At four in the morning - a different tone set in

"This baby's not coming," his mood very sober

"It's the knife or the vacuum - you think it over"

In moments he returned; our decision was clear:

Avoid surgery at all costs and get the babe safely here

Three more long pushes as doc pulled with his might

This baby would come, but not without fight

With one final push, then a sweet little cry,

Tears swirled down cheeks of all standing by,

A bundle of love gently placed on my chest,
My heart filled with joy -- this was the best!

Her eyes -- how they twinkled! Her dimples how merry!

Her cheeks were like roses, her nose like a cherry!
Her head full of dark, soft feathery hair

Her eyes wide and happy, awake and aware

Spencer and I just basked in the bliss

As we held our sweet baby and gave her a kiss!
We're so in love; a family of three!
And that is how Clara Jane Evans came to be

Clara Jane Evans

12.24.10 - 4:14 am

7 pounds 8 ounces - 19.5 inches

Randoms

2010-12-15T08:42:00.000-05:00

Remember how I'm due to have a baby on Christmas Day? And how I'm hoping that she comes before Christmas? Yeah, still hoping. Especially since my tentative induction date is set for January 1, 2011. And even though 1.1.11 would be a super cool birthday, I'd love to have the baby this year. Please send any labor-inducing vibes my way.

Also, I need some snow boots. We were at REI the other night and I spotted these Sorel Tivoli's - so cute! I think I'm in love.

Also, I'm curious what everyone is doing for neighbor gifts this year. I think it's fun to do something a little different - like last years pico de gallo and chips, but this year I'm debating whether or not I have the energy to do anything at all. At the same time, I know that it's just the kind of distraction I need at this point, so send your super easy ideas my way.

For the Babe, Part iii

2010-11-18T12:20:00.000-05:00

I think I'm done making quilts. At least for this baby. Five should be enough, right? Oh, and by quilts, I don't mean blankets (there are a few of those too). I mean cutting, pressing, piecing, sewing, quilting/tying, binding quilts. Yes, five.

I really wanted to show the finished products today since I just finished binding the last of them last night, but my quilt-holding-husband is gone during daylight hours so decent photos in natural light will have to wait until Saturday. But I did get some ok photos of some of the details. The colors aren't showing at their best, but it'll give you an idea of what I've made.

First up is my "Sunshine Squares" quilt. It's white and yellow and has all different sizes of offset squares and rectangles. I created this one after seeing photos of a similar quilt online. My mom helped me figure out the best way to go about how to cut the pieces and put it all together to get the look I wanted. After piecing the top and back, I handed this one off to my talented cousin who machine quilted it for me. She said it reminded her of a bouquet of daisies, so she quilted it like petals and blossoms coming out from each center block. My mom generously paid for the quilting and binding - thanks mom!

Here's my "Wonky Star" quilt in aqua, pink and yellow. Nothing like a photo to show you that a quilt needs a good pressing. :) I used this tutorial which was pretty easy to follow - I just increased the size of each block. This quilt actually came together pretty quickly and it was my first attempt at binding. Yikes! I just kept this one simple and tied it with pink embroidery floss. The colors look kind of dull here, but it's bright, fun and vibrant.

Here's part of the back of the Wonky Stars quilt. I have always had it in my head that the backs of quilts had to be one big solid piece. But I've fallen in love with pieced quilt backs all of my recent creations have them.

Here's one that's pretty simple - just five inch squares and two borders. I bought the fabric for this before I knew the gender of our baby and I think the bright blues and greens will be perfect for our little girl! I used a a satin stitch on the machine to "tie" this one. It's the smallest of the quilts and will be good for outings in the stroller.

Here's a changing pad cover I made (there's also a yellow one in the top drawer). It's super soft and cute! The little book on the left was a gift from a sweet friend - a scrapbook baby book with the cutest papers and nursery rhymes on each page! It has a spot on each spread for photos and stats and is so darling.

There's another quilt I don't have at my house right now, but it's pretty awesome. It matches the custom moses basket bedding my mom and I worked on together. Pictures of that (and more projects) to come! Oh, and in case you are wondering, there are five weeks and two days until Christmas.

Mapping it Out

2010-11-14T09:20:00.000-05:00

I have a thing for maps. Not the kind you can pick up at state lines or national parks (Spencer is much better at appreciating those), but cool old (non-folding) maps of... just about anywhere. I'm still kicking myself for not buying that cool vintage map of Brasil that I found at the market in Lille. Since Spencer and I have done our fair share of traveling and living abroad, we both have some cool photos we've taken (except those from my four months living in Brussels -- let's not talk about it), lots of travel books, and small souvenirs from various destinations. That's what made me want our basement family room to have a little bit of international flair and be our main spot for putting such items to use in the decor.

It's yet another house project that remains somewhat unconquered, but I'm encouraged by a recent find: bird's eye view maps. In the late nineteenth century, bird's eye view maps became quite popular - artists would depict a city as though standing on a mountain overlooking the town. Details and geography are not always complete or accurate, but these tell us a lot about how life was back then. Plus, they look pretty cool. So imagine how happy I was to stumble into the full gallery of bird's eye view maps, scanned, stored and downloadable at super high res thanks to the Library of Congress.

So great, right? I'm planning on printing up all of the cities where we have lived (DC, Salt Lake, Portland, New York) and framing them for the basement. Now I just have to figure out how to open a jp2 file...

Making it Masterful

2010-11-12T12:00:00.002-05:00

For a while now, I've been feeling like our "master" bedroom needs a major makeover. Like something that would make you think that it's actually a bedroom where two adults reside. Since we are typically the only ones who see it, it has taken a back seat to other projects and continually remains at the bottom of the list. But working on baby girl's bedroom and taking the time to pull it all together has been really fun and satisfying. And it's made me want to start thinking more seriously about the direction our bedroom needs to go. I've been thinking about this for sometime, making a mental list of items, colors and projects that could take our room to the next level. This morning I took the time to put together a little mood board as a first attempt at putting it all on paper.

Here's the breakdown:

1. Dupioni Silk Thermal Curtains (in bone - no valance) hung wide and high to give the room a little extra height. We have three 31" windows all next to each other on one outside wall and these would be hung on either side and pulled shut at night for added warmth.

2. Our bedroom is painted a pretty sage green/gray color that we really like. It's warm and relaxing and we're planning on keeping it that way. The rest of the room will be mostly neutral - tans and creamy whites - with additional pops of sage and slate blue.

3. Blinds! We have four windows in our room that currently have horrendous blinds. They are awful to open and shut and they badly need replacing. We'll just go with a simple faux-wood 2" blind from Home Depot.

4. A full length floor mirror to replace my $5 bendy walmart mirror. This one is pretty and large and I think it would bring a more masterful feeling to the room.

5. Some throw pillows to bring the color palette together and make the bed look complete and inviting. The ones shown are from Target, but I have a few pillow forms I could easily make fun covers for. It would just be a matter of finding cute fabric.

6. Until about a month ago I had a very juvenile ceramic lamp (which found a new home in the nursery) and Spencer had a brown flexi-neck desk lamp. I've been wanting to get matching lamps for a while - little things like this can make a big difference! I have one of the lamps shown, now we just need to get one for Spencer's side of the bed. His desk lamp has been replaced by a much cuter alternative (given to us by my mom), but I'm still liking the idea of them matching.

7. I bought this Havana Duvet set about a year ago. In sage. So we've already got it. Strangely, it's not on the bed right now, but we have it none the less.

8. Right now we have a mattress and box spring on some kind of generic bedframe, but we don't have a bed. Meaning a headboard or footboard or anything of the like. I've thought about making a tufted headboard myself, but at $99 this bed might be a good alternative. Oh, and we also could totally use a new mattress. Nothing like being pregnant to make you aware of that!

9. I'd love to get a pretty rug that goes under the bed and comes out on three sides. We have nice hardwood floors, but it would be nice to have those first-steps-getting-out-of-bed-each-morning be on something soft and warm. This rug is plenty big (7.5x10.5) to provide the needed floor coverage.

10. This woven round storage ottoman would be a perfect little table next to an armchair. I'm not too keen on the price or the fact that our cat's one weakness (in scratching) is materials like this, but I'm sure I could find something similar and less expensive at Home Goods.

11. This is the Ektorp Jennylund armchair from Ikea. Again, not set on this particular chair, but I love having a chair in our room. We've had the glider in there since we bought it a few months back and it's such a nice addition. Last night I had Spencer move it into the nursery (so I could make sure it fit where I was planning) and I can definitely feel the void in our room now. Some kind of armchair would be great.

12. We have a floor lamp, but it's a plastic one from Wal-Mart. I keep waiting for the shade to melt. I don't mind it that much, but I'd really like something with a bit more warmth and texture.

13. Nightstands. We have these! Well, not these - but I figured they were a good representation of what I'm aiming for. We picked up two mismatched night stands (black and wood color) at an antique shop in Midway before we even got married. In fact, I think that was the same day that marriage first came up in a conversation for us. Anyway, I've been meaning to paint them a creamy white, but I'm waiting until the babe takes up residence on the outside of my body so I don't have to worry about the fumes.

So there you have it. Thoughts? Advice? Anything I'm missing? I'd love your input!

Update in a List

2010-11-04T11:34:00.001-04:00

- Despite my initial plan for Spencer and I to dress up as Juno and Paulie Bleeker, I just didn't feel like pulling costumes together since we didn't have any Halloween parties to go to. We spent the evening handing out candy to cute neighbors and enjoying a visit from Carol.

- It's November! I'm almost 33 weeks pregnant and my doctor's appointment yesterday showed that everything is perfect and right on track. Baby girl is positioned head down, has a strong heartbeat and is kicking around A LOT. BP, weight and all other factors for me are in check.

- There are some things about pregnancy that you don't hear about until it's your turn to experience them. For me it's been third trimester insomnia. Since everyone seems to tell Spencer and me to be getting as much sleep as we can before the baby comes, I thought that would be just a matter of, you know, sleeping. Not so, my friend! My body thinks the best way to prepare for baby is by waking up several times during the night, including the entire period from roughly 3-6 am each morning. At least when I have a baby I'll have something meaningful/necessary to do during those hours.

- We started our childbirth class a few weeks ago and so far it's been good! I think we both learn new things at each class and have enjoyed getting more mentally prepared for labor and delivery.

- We took a weekend trip about two weeks ago to San Francisco. We wanted to take one last getaway before life changes big time and we figured it would be great fun to go back to San Francisco - one of the first places we traveled to while dating, and where we got engaged. I guess this is called a babymoon, but I kind of refuse to call it that. We had a great time relaxing, eating, and exploring the city.

- I can barely zip the one jacket that still fits over my belly (see photo above). I really don't want to buy a maternity coat since I'll only need it for a few wintery weeks -- do I need one? Plus, I hardly get cold anymore since I have a built-in internal space heater now.

- I saw this cute tutorial today for a turkey applique shirt. I want to remember it for next year and make one for the babe.

Due to a Few Requests

2010-10-31T23:18:00.001-04:00

When I first found out I was pregnant, I thought it would be fun to take a weekly photo to record the pregnancy. Turns out you become a little less motivated to take these photos when you feel larger than a house. Actually, I've only done 5 over the entire pregnancy. Oh well. But since a few of you have asked, here they are! (click to see the whole thing a bit bigger)

I will say though, that God does compensate for some of the discomfort of the last part of pregnancy by giving you awesomely thick hair. Although I hear that it all falls out after the baby is born, I'm trying to enjoy this while it lasts. :)

Bit By Bit

2010-10-14T18:54:00.001-04:00

We're definitely making some progress on getting ready for baby. It's funny, because I hop on babycenter.com all the time, and in the forums for my birth club (the month of your due date) people are talking about having their hospital bag ready and their nursery has been finished for weeks. Seems a little OCD to have a hospital bag packed with 10+ weeks to go... but maybe that's just me. I'll be totally content if we have bedding in the crib, a place to change diapers and store clothes, and a some art on the wall by the time baby arrives. Even though I've been working on lots of projects, I'm not sure they'll all have a "home" before our little girl is here.

Spencer painted the room on conference Saturday with Benjamin Moore's Dolphin's Cove (mixed in Behr Satin paint) and it turned out just lovely. It was exactly what I wanted. We're still debating painting the trim and ceiling since they could both use it, but I've brought in a few things to see if "the look" is coming together how I imagined it. So far, so good.

Isn't the little owl toy cute? I made it one afternoon last week and I'm quite proud -- no tutorial or pattern, I just used some scraps and winged it (no pun intended) after seeing how cute this was. I added a little loop of ribbon too, so we can use those linky things to attach it to... well, anything. :) I made the ball in a few minutes on Saturday.

I started writing this a few days ago - now we've got the crib set up, I made a crib skirt and my cute yellow sunshine quilt is hanging over the side. We found a dresser in the as-is section of Ikea (so nice that we saved $50 AND didn't have to assemble it!) which will double as a changing table. The moses basket is ready and has new bedding that my mom and I made together over conference weekend. The roman shades are done and only need to be mounted in the windows. With all we've gotten done, I still feel like there's much to do and my energy wanes as I get a little more uncomfortable each day. Soon enough it will all be worth it.

For the Babe, Part ii

2010-09-13T13:37:00.005-04:00

I don't have lots of projects to show today, but I just finished one that I wanted to share. I made this blanket for my little one (just over 100 days to go!):

I know the top looks pretty wrinkled. That's partly because it is and partly because somehow the camera really emphasizes the wrinkles. When I finished sewing I tossed it in the dryer to get rid of any random fluff and it came out like this. Apparently no amount of ironing will help. Meh, baby won't mind. I used a combo of tutorials; this blanket was super easy and pretty fast to make. I used this bunting quilt tutorial for the quilt top and this baby quilt tutorial for finishing it off. And it's really soft and comfy. Bonus.

(p.s. if we ever happen to get another cat, I'm naming it Bonus)

For The Babe

2010-09-01T19:46:00.006-04:00

I've been working on lots of projects for our little one. I haven't been great about taking photos of everything I've made, but here are a few.

I bought some knee socks at Target and made them into baby legs. Baby legs are cute baby leg warmers that cost $12 a pair. Target knee socks are $2 a pair. And they take about 10 minutes to make. The after photos aren't that exciting - they'll be much better when there are chubby baby thighs sticking out of them. :)
I've heard that Target gets new knee socks quite regularly, so this could be a dangerous hobby to have.

I also cut out some cute fabrics to embellish plain old gerber prefold cloth diapers to make burp cloths. Easy peasy.
There are tons of tutorials for this around the interweb. My favorite is right here.

I'm also making some progress on the baby's room. I wish I was as inspired to work on my own bedroom, because I think hers will be pretty cool. For a color, I've settled on Benjamin Moore's Dolphin's Cove. I read about it in House Beautiful's blue issue when they interviewed various designers about their favorite shades of blue. It's a pretty Tiffany aqua blue that I think will go magnificently with the bursts of yellow and hints of pink I have planned for her room. More on that later.

Some other projects I've started: some quilts (yes, more than one... I can't help myself! Too many cute fabrics and color combos out there), t-shirts transformed into infant gowns, homemade roman shades for the windows, knit baby caps, a changing pad cover, a mobile and closet curtains (we're taking down the doors). So far it's lots of fun! Here's a peek at one of the quilts at an almost-done stage.
Also, I've learned that I'm definitely a better sewer than crafter...

Homemade

2010-08-13T07:00:00.000-04:00

A new neighbor of ours recently had their first baby - a boy. I made a little collection of gifts to welcome him to the world.
A ric-rac edged flannel blanket, a knit hat (with ears!), a burp cloth, and an appliqued onesie.

Yesterday's Harvest

2010-08-12T15:01:00.000-04:00

The Scream

2010-08-12T10:47:00.006-04:00

I had my 20 week ultrasound on Tuesday. I was so anxious to know that the baby was healthy and that everything was developing properly. Of course, I was also excited to find out the gender! I have seen plenty of ultrasound images, but when it's your baby on that screen everything becomes fascinating: the heart valves, the kidneys, bladder, the spine, eyes, nose, mouth, tiny fingers and toes. It really is incredible that an entire being can come about in such a short period of time. Our favorite part of the ultrasound was catching a glimpse of our baby yawning. Pretty much the cutest thing ever. Here's a picture of the baby mid-yawn (I think it looks like Munch's "The Scream")
After some prodding the ultrasound technician was able to confirm that our baby is a GIRL! Everything about her seems to be healthy and normal and we are very relieved. We are really excited to welcome this little girl into our family and teach her about all the wonderful things in life. Plus, now I have an excuse to sew ruffles onto the bums of onesies.

Glads

2010-07-22T12:34:00.005-04:00

I finally cut some gladiolus from my garden today and brought them inside to enjoy. Am I the only one who thinks that glads are {among} the prettiest flowers?

For the Overzealous Mother-to-Be

2010-07-13T08:11:00.010-04:00

...who obviously has no idea what she's getting herself into (that would be me). I've recently found lots of great blogs with super cute ideas for homemade baby and kid things. I've had a hard time keeping track of them all and my bookmark list is getting a bit out of control. I thought I'd create a post just to organize these projects in case I ever have time to make them. Last night I looked at the list and thought, "twenty-three projects... twenty-three weeks (until baby) - that's doable" -- well, we shall see. I may or may not have added to the list since last night... Maybe I'll even post some finished projects here too.

Baby Boy or Girl
Knit Baby Hats
Stroller Quilt
Wet Bags
Newborn Gowns
Burp Cloths - Appliqued Here or Flannel Here or Embellished Gerber Here
Shirt Sleeve Baby Hat
Baby Legs
Appliqued Onesies (I don't have a tutorial, but I've made a few so no need)
Bitty Booties
Hooded Towel
Sock Animal Rattle -- so cute!
Fabric Blocks
Stardust Shoes
Changing Pad
Taggie Animals
Jingle Ball
Cloth Baby Rings
Black & White Board Book - images here
Owl Toy
Flannel Receiving Blankets - I've been making these for new babies I know, here's a tutorial I like
Bath Toy Bag

For Baby's Room
Fabric Covered Night Light
Lamb Pillows
Bird Mobile
Pom Pom Curtains (to replace closet doors)
Custom Crib Sheets - here, here and here
Changing Pad Cover
Decoupaged Stool (to use as an ottoman with my glider)
Embroidery Hoop Wall Art
Crib Skirt
Furniture Decoupage
Window Shades -- not sure what I'll do for these yet

Baby Girl
Baby Bonnet
Vintage Bloomers
Black Apple Doll
Petal/Ruffle Onesies - love these
Itty Bitty Dress
Rose Barrettes
Another Bonnet (I realize I have lots of hats/bonnets, but I'll need to keep our December baby's little ears warm!)
Baby Tights
Felt Baby Shoes
Stretchy Baby Headband
Wool Felt Hat

Baby Boy
Diaper Change Cone
Shirt Pocket Quilt

Older Baby/Kid
Car Playmat
Felt Food
Rollie Pollie
Play Food Salt and Pepper
Cozy Car Caddy - love.
Crayon Roll
Fabric Memory Cards
Kneepad Pants
Photo Memory Game
I Spy Bag
Alphabet Flashcards
Dishtowel Bathrobe
Quiet Book - fab examples here, here, here, here and here

Looking Forward to Christmas

2010-06-28T09:08:00.000-04:00

We're looking forward to Christmas a little early this year -- and probably with a lot more anticipation and anxiety than ever before. It is the day that Baby Evans is due to join our family!

Spencer and I are thrilled, of course. Here are some answers to questions you may or may not have.

Did you plan on a Christmas baby? Um, no... who would do that to a child? At the same time, we are happy for the prospect of a growing family on any day of the year. We are also excited that we'll probably have some extended family in town for the holidays when the baby comes.

Will you name a boy Jesus or a girl Mary? You never know what Spencer might pull out of his sleeve on blessing day. One of my nephews, in a moment of sheer brilliance, suggested Santa.

How are you feeling?
Pretty good, considering I'm growing another human. I'm about as tired as anyone might be while growing a baby (read: very). I think I have fared pretty well compared to all the stories I've heard. I'm starting to get over it, but for the first 12 weeks I hated the thought of planning or preparing meals. I would gag: at the grocery store, while putting away groceries, retrieving anything from the refrigerator, trying to plan my dinners for the week, trying to prepare any meals (especially anything with meat). Thankfully, this seems to be improving.

Do you guys think it's a boy or a girl?
No strong inklings yet. When I imagine the doctor handing me a baby at the hospital, it's a girl. When I imagine a small child (gently) tearing the house apart, it's a boy. I'm not sure what this means. In a poll taken of our nieces and nephews, the nieces think it's a girl and all but one nephew thinks it is a boy. We're definitely planning on finding out the gender (this should happen in early August). I can't wait to start painting, sewing, and shopping for our wee one. We'll be thrilled with a boy or a girl and are only hoping for a healthy baby.

How did you tell your families?

We found out that I was pregnant in mid-April and decided that Mother's Day (May 9th) would be the perfect occasion to share the news with our families. Both sets of our parents, Spencer's sister Carol, and my grandma Betty would be at our house for dinner. I wanted to do something clever to make our announcement, but wasn't really sure what. About a week before Mother's Day, my sister Mollie sent me an email suggesting that we create something similar to this for our mom's gift. Unbeknownst to Mollie, this was the perfect solution to my "telling the family creatively" dilemma! Everyone on both sides of the family took silhouette photos and emailed them to me so I could create the charts; one for each mom. Here's what we came up with:

I printed, framed and wrapped them up for our moms. Carol (Spencer's mom) noticed the newest posterity right away. My mom remarked on how lovely it was and passed it around the table for my dad and grandma to see (to my mom's credit, I think the new baby is not quite as obvious on the Madsen chart). I told my mom she should look a little closer... Soon enough, the whole family was in the know and smiles and misty eyes were everywhere. We emailed the final product to out-of-state siblings and called them to share the news that day.

Have you picked out names you like?

We both have names that we like (I have lots of favorites; Spencer's list is a bit shorter). There are several that we agree on. I have a name philosophy (and rules to boot) that probably merits its own post. We probably won't name our baby before we meet him or her, just settle on a few strong contenders and then make a final decision once the babe is in our arms.

I am a little more than 14 weeks along and things seem to be progressing perfectly. Now we're just counting the days until Christmas...

Have You Seen This?

2010-05-04T12:40:00.001-04:00

One of my favorites so far.

Chairs!

2010-04-23T18:14:00.003-04:00

About three years ago I picked up some chairs at DI for $10 (for 4). I recovered them in red stripey fabric, but now my dining room is headed in a new direction, so they needed a new look. Besides that, the seats were sinking and starting to get uncomfortable. I reinforced and repadded the seats and chose a pretty aqua floral for reupholstering. It's actually a quilt - from Home Goods (TJ Maxx) - so there is a little extra padding in the fabric itself. What do you think?

Garden Planning

2010-04-07T17:27:00.002-04:00

After my great gardening experience last summer, I was anxious to get started on things this year. I started planning what I would grow back in January, and just came inside from building a new raised bed -- it will double our garden size from last year. I've been clearing out old bushes to make way for blackberries and raspberries and identified the perfect spot for a strawberry patch yesterday (under 6 inches of fresh snow, then hail).

I've always used an excel spreadsheet to make a little map of my garden plan, but I just discovered a great new tool! Gardener's Supply has an awesome garden planner that goes by the square foot method. It's got cool little pictures that show you how many of each plant go in each square as well as lots of pre-designed garden plans based on your goals (salsa garden, kid's garden, high yield garden, etc.) to make it even easier. This is one of the best (free!) garden planning tools I've found yet, so I just wanted to share. Enjoy!

Room By Room

2010-04-02T15:20:00.007-04:00

We've lived in our house for just over a year now, and I'm starting to feel more antsy about getting everything more.... decorated. Just for the record, I'm not a big fan of "stuff" and try to limit my decor to functional items, beautiful artwork, a few treasures from traveling, photos and good books. The first room I've set out to conquer is the dining room. It's already gone through a few changes since we moved in and I have the main pieces in place. Here's what I'm starting with:
The table is a mid-century piece I picked up on sale at my cousin's consignment shop. I love it because it has three leaves, allowing it to expand for large meals with lots of guests. The table top is painted a beautiful tiffany blueish teal and the legs are creamy white. The hutch is one I bought off of craigslist and have been meaning to paint (this will happen this summer, promise). The chairs were 4/$10 at DI and I recovered them with red stripey fabric from IKEA before I got the table. They need to be repadded and recaned, so I'll probably recover them once again in the process. The jute rug (Pier 1) was also a find at my cousin's consignment shop. The blinds are an ivory on linen damask pattern. Also, I have blue and white dishes in the hutch.

Now for the mood boards. I can't quite decide on the color palette, so I made two. I'm starting with a very neutral base and plan to use everything I have, but I want to make a few changes to add a spalsh of color and tie it all together.
The teal/blue room would involve painting the hutch a creamy white, while adding teal beadboard to the back (wouldn't that be pretty with the blue and white dishes?). I'd hang white curtain panels at the windows and sliding door and give the table top a fresh coat of paint to match the beadboard. I'd buy and frame "almond branch" by Van Gogh from allposters.com and hang it on the wall next to the hutch. Also, I would recover the chairs in a blue/teal/white stripe or pattern to match.
In the red room, I'd paint the table top red, find a cool piece of artwork to hang, recover the chairs, but probably in a similar fabric to what they are now, hang Chris Madden checkerboard curtains, and paint the hutch a creamy white.

Oh, I also forgot to mention that I'm planning on doing a family history wall on the wall that currently has three photos on it. It will be similar to this:
I think the color schemes are both good options, but can't really decide. Thoughts?

Pumpkinlina Xue Bai Monkey Face

2010-03-30T11:18:00.005-04:00

It's kind of sad, but I still feel like our cat doesn't have an official name. At the vet she is on the books as Pumpkin (mostly because it was too hard to explain and spell Xue Bai over the phone) and so that's what I tell people when they ask. But on any given day she's called by dozens of names - including but not limited to: Whiskerlina, Pumpkin, Pumpkinlina, Monkey, Monkey Face, Bebe, Bebekins, Stupidlina, Fatty, Charlie, Monkeylina, Xue Bai, Kitty, Crazy, Cheese Monger, Dirty, Dusty, Blackie etc, etc.

Poor thing. I think we make up for her lack of name by how spoiled she is and how much we love her. Fair trade, right?

The Second Half

2010-03-30T11:08:00.007-04:00

Last weekend Spencer and I headed down to Green River and Moab for the Canyonlands Half Marathon. We had signed up for the race together, but a back injury made it difficult for Spencer to train for, and run the race. Instead he got me psyched for the race, made sure I was hydrating and fueling properly (great excuse to eat multiple candy bars), and was there to take photos and cheer me on as I crossed the finish line.
This is right before I crossed the finish line. Those first few minutes after finishing are so incredibly painful, it's difficult even to stand up and walk. It's amazing that within 48 hours my body felt completely back to normal and free of pain.The course was beautiful. We ran right along the Colorado river and sheer red rock cliffs and on into town. It was a sunny but chilly day. As we made our way into Moab, we tuned into a local forecast that informed us of the current temperature on race day morning - 27 degrees. Yikes! The hardest part of the race was waiting at the top of a cold and shady canyon for over two hours after being bussed up. I stayed in my warm clothes for as long as I could before stripping down to my race attire and tossing my sweat bag into one of the trucks. No worries though, by the third mile I could feel all of my toes again.

Pasta Primavera

2010-01-20T14:01:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to plan at least 3-4 meatless recipes a week so we can focus on getting all our veggies and more "clean" eating. Also, I recently watched Food, Inc. so I've been having a harder time eating meat and processed foods. (I still do, just not when I'm thinking about the movie...)

Last night I made Pasta Primavera, which I adapted from a recipe posted on This Week For Dinner. It was really tasty and I wanted to share. I can't wait to make it in the summer when I can get most of the ingredients from my own garden!

Ingredients:
5-6 cloves of garlic
2 tsp olive oil
3 cups chopped tomatoes
1/4 cup white grape juice (the recipe called for white wine, but I don't keep that on hand. I'm sure you could probably use chicken stock as another alternative)
1/2 cup basil leaves (I actually forgot this and it was still really good)
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
2 small carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1 red bell pepper cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1 generous handful of sugar snap peas, cut in half
1 generous handful off green beans, cut into 2-inch chunks
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound farfalle pasta
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (or you can use Pecorino)
(these are the ingredients I used, you can also add any number of additional vegetables... asparagus, snow peas, zucchini, green peas, etc.)

image via This Week For Dinner

Directions:
Bring a pot of water to boil. Meanwhile, saute the garlic and oil in a saucepan for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, grape juice and salt and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the basil and red onions, cover, remove from heat.

When the water is boiling, blanch the vegetables. Put the carrots in first. After one minute add the remaining vegetables. Cook for another minute or two and then lift them out with a slotted spoon (or colander if you're fancy like that). Reserve the pot of boiling water and add the pasta. Cook until al dente.

Stir the drained veggies into the tomato sauce. Add salt and pepper, cover, and set aside. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the reserved water and 3 tablespoons of the grated cheese. Finally, top with the tomato-veggie sauce. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and serve immediately.

Yum!

two years

2010-01-20T11:17:00.002-05:00

From Scratch

2010-01-15T18:01:00.003-05:00

I have to share my internet find of the day. Spencer and I always talk and dream about building furniture. I love knowing that something is solid, made of real wood, and built with love. After my adventure in construction last year, I feel a little more comfortable and knowledgeable in working with wood and tools. Which is why I was so excited to find Knock Off Wood. It's a completely amazing site full of plans for knock-off furniture from all the (overpriced) favorites - Pottery Barn, West Elm, Land of Nod. I seriously can't wait to get started.

2009 In Review

2010-01-02T18:52:00.003-05:00

It's become sort of a tradition to review each year with some random lists. Here goes:

Best Things 2009:
1. Buying a house that we love
2. Taking a family trip (Evans) to Yellowstone and the Tetons
3. Weekend jaunts to Colorado, Oregon and Moab
4. Running my first half marathon
5. Helping my business grow
6. Growing my first real garden
7. Adding a cute kitten to the family

Not So Amazing Things 2009:
1. Losing a few key clients on the freelance side of things
2. A few house problems (thankfully solved) - termites, broken water valve, etc.
3. Some things just not working out as I had hoped

Places I visited in 2009:
1. Yellowstone
2. The Grand Tetons
3. Moab, UT
4. Portland, OR and The Oregon Coast
5. Loveland/Colorado Springs, CO

Concerts I attended in 2009:
Honestly, I can't think of any. Wow. Seriously?

Realizations of 2009:
1. Sometimes even despite your best efforts, you just can't please everyone
2. Losing a client is not always a bad thing
3. LOST is one of the best shows on television and I'm kind of sad that we're gearing up for the final season. I watched seasons 1-5 this year and everything since then has been more or less a disappointment.
4. Michael Cera is not really an actor. He's the same in everything, which I'm pretty sure is himself and not even a character. Despite this, I still enjoy some/most (not sure) of his movies/tv.

a proud Christmas moment

2009-12-22T13:17:00.004-05:00

This year, as far as the holidays go, I'm trying to do things grown-ups do. You know, sending cards, making treats for neighbors. We've been getting treats from friends in the neighborhood for the past several days and while a love a good soft ginger snap, or beautifully frosted sugar cookie, I wanted to do something a little different to give everyone a break from the sweetness of the season.

So I came up with pico de gallo. And little cello bags of tortilla chip strips. Yum. I spent most of yesterday afternoon slicing, dicing, chopping and mixing. In the end, I think they turned out kinda cute.

Highlights from the Recent Past

2009-12-21T10:11:00.004-05:00

Here are some of the things that have been keeping me busy:

I turned 28 about two weeks ago. I didn't think about it until just now, but we celebrated with cuisine from the two countries I've lived in for extended periods (outside the US) - churrasco from Tucanos and a liege waffle from Bruges Waffles & Frites. I've also been treated to family dinners and friend lunches. All lovely!
Spencer got me a kitten for my birthday! After much debate, I decided to just name her what I'd been calling her all along - Pumpkin. She's pretty much doubled in size since we got her. She's been a joy and such a good little companion to me during my lonely work days at home. She spends most of the day curled on my lap while I type/design/fill orders.

Sugarhouse Ink has been BUSY. I couldn't be more thankful. December has been a record month and has grown significantly over last year.
I finally got some furniture for our living room (aside from the couch we already had). With the tree up and the new additions, it's definitely feeling more homey!
We had two of my college roommates and their husbands over for dinner last week. It was so great to spend the evening with Jenny and Nigel (visiting from Boston) and Whitney and Jeff (who live in Provo and I don't see enough for being so close!).
Just as I completely stopped running (for sub-freezing temps and/or lack of motivation), Spencer and I got word that we got into the Moab Canyonlands Half Marathon. We signed up twice before and weren't selected , and now I'm wondering why we kept trying. :P Training in freezing cold of winter? Training in busy season? Training while the days are the shortest and the coldest? I'm not sure what we were thinking. Race day is set for March 20th.
Every Christmas Design Mom hosts Christmas giveaways with really big prizes. This year I won one of them! $250 to Cambria Cove... still trying to figure out what to buy. ($100 cheesecake anyone?)
In an attempt to be a real grown up, I've been gathering addresses for Christmas cards. I just haven't designed ours yet... It may end up being a New Years card instead. (or a Valentine?)

the name thing

2009-11-10T09:10:00.002-05:00

Do you read Design Mom? It has been one of my very favorite blogs for a long time. I have always loved the names of her kids, so when Ask Design Mom Week rolled around, I decided to ask her where she found her inspiration. And she answered! I had to figure I wasn't the only one wondering what the stories were behind Ralph, Maude, Olive, Oscar and Betty were.

way better than the real thing

2009-10-30T16:26:00.005-04:00

Tuesday

2009-10-19T15:45:00.002-04:00

One of the things that feels more and more like it's fading into a former life, is my relationship with music - namely my constant search for the new, the chill, the undiscovered, the raw; the subtle harmonies and rhythmic acoustic goodness that were ever so sweet and constantly bombarding my hard drive, overflowing with itunes playlists.

I used to look forward to Tuesdays - new album release day - and would purchase new CDs (so old school, right?) or download entire albums so I could hear songs in the context the artists intended. Tomorrow is Tuesday. And I don't know a lot about which albums you should be anticipating, but aren't - except for one. I've long been a fan of Kings of Convenience, and their happy, honest, understated music is coming together once again after a nearly five year hiatus. Declaration of Dependence debuts tomorrow. Check it out.

Bright Star

2009-10-03T23:57:00.004-04:00

I just got home from the movie Bright Star. I knew nothing about the film before seeing it, but would have to say Abbie Cornish's performance was fantastic. Add her to the short list for deserving a nomination this year. Her character made me want to sew all of my own fashion-forward clothes - ok not really, but they were stunning none the less. The movie leaves you somewhere between deliciously depressed and in a post-Keats euphoria. So, so good.

Also, Toots was my favorite.

New Designs In My Shop

2009-09-24T11:00:00.004-04:00

I don't usually plug my shop on my personal blog, but I've been working hard on lots of new designs and thought I'd share a few.

Here are some of the latest birth announcements
And some new Christmas card designs
If you're really interested in all the latest, you could sign up for the newsletter, twitter stalk, check out the blog, or become a fan on facebook. Also, I've started selling digital print-your-own designs on Etsy. Ok, enough of this shameless plug... time to get back to work.

here comes autumn

2009-09-17T13:19:00.003-04:00

The only thing I find moderately depressing about autumn is that the days start to get noticeably shorter. The rest, I can definitely live with. My love affair with autumn is no secret. I savor every chance to bask in the glory of the season we call fall. The crisp air, the cooler days, the beautiful rusty colors of pumpkins and apples and gourds, the celebration of harvest and smell of spice, the foliage, the fresh start of a new school year... I just love it all.

Back when we got married, some generous soul gave Spencer and I a gift card to Williams Sonoma. Of course nearly everything in their store is delectable and tempting, but I knew I'd probably end up spending the gifted money on something more spontaneous than practical. When I stumbled across these pocket pie molds yesterday, I knew I had found my treasure. {I bought an apple peeler/corer too, for good measure. I'll be a mini pie making fiend!}

128.65 miles (of training)

2009-09-10T09:25:00.007-04:00

A long time ago I set a goal to run a half marathon. I tried twice to run a Utah race, but due to it's popularity and my lack of luck, I was never selected to run it (it was lottery style). When my sister made plans to run a race in her new hometown on her birthday, I thought it would be the perfect excuse to train for one myself.

Amanda and I ran the American Discovery Trail Half Marathon on Labor Day and had a great time. We were both pretty nervous in the days leading up to the race, having never attempted such a feat, but everything went really smooth and we had a really good race.

This is right before the race while we waited in the infinitely long bathroom line and tried to warm up and stretch a bit.
Waiting for the starting gun...
Coming around the final stretch (trying to give a thumbs up)
Just after finishing
All done!

Made My Day

2009-09-03T15:35:00.004-04:00

Despite all my best efforts to coupon, I've never been able to score terribly amazing deals with it... until now. I just have to share because I'm so excited about how it worked out!

At Target, Dreyer's ice cream is on sale for $2.50 per 1.5 quart. A decent deal.
But, they also have a deal going where you get a $5 Target gift card for every 5 tubs you buy. That brings the price down to $1.50 per tub. A pretty good deal. My sister Amanda told me about a coupon she found online for $1 off of one tub. Print if 5 times and you get each tub for $.50! I thought that was a total steal until last night when I was at Dan's and saw a tear-off pad in the freezer section for a $4 rebate when you buy 4 tubs of Dreyer's ice cream... which can only mean two things: 1)I had a freezer cleaning party this morning to make room for my new acquisitions 2) Dreyer's paid me $1.50 to take 7.5 quarts of ice cream off their hands. Hooray!

the butter to my bread and the breath to my life

2009-08-15T17:38:00.003-04:00

Last night Spencer and I went to see Julie & Julia. It was charming and fun, as expected. Meryl Streep was the perfect choice to play Julia Child and I wouldn't be surprised if she gets an Oscar nomination for her performance (surely she deserves it). I came away from the movie hungry and happy, and with a renewed sense of confidence to try difficult things, particularly in the kitchen.

But perhaps my favorite aspect of the film was how it portrayed marriage. It wasn't the glitzy, glamorous rendition that Hollywood so often feeds us. Instead it showed spouses encouraging and supporting one another in their pursuits and on to success, even despite the frustration, challenges, and setbacks that they each confronted. Patience and humor were trademarks of their marriages - and fine french cooking to boot.

Maybe it stood out to me because it's something I have been thinking about lately. It seems that more than fairy tale or Jane Austen ideals, marriage is two people simply going through life together. And the best choice you can make is someone who will cheer you on through it all, even - and especially - when you're determined to do something daunting.

Without saying too much about my husband's saintly qualities (watch the movie and you'll understand why I'd avoid the topic), I'll just say I made an excellent choice.

tumblr.

2009-07-16T23:04:00.004-04:00

I heard about tumblr a while back, but didn't think I needed yet another blogging device. However, I signed on recently and have found it extremely helpful in cataloging things I find for the house. So I've created a tumblr account as a morgue for all of my homemaking daydreams. The only crummy part is that there doesn't seem to be a comment feature. Either way, feel free to check it out: http://sarahcarioca.tumblr.com/

update: I figured out a way to add a comment feature. So comment away!

on top of old faithful

2009-07-11T22:28:00.017-04:00

We just returned from a fantastic summer vacation. The whole Evans clan got together for a week in the Tetons and Yellowstone. The weather was perfect, the cousins got along great, the sights were spectacular, and the activities were swell. Looking back on it, it's crazy to think of just how much we packed in to one week:

We navigated our way to Wyoming

Motor boated and canoed around Jackson Lake
Took way too many photos of cute nieces and nephews
Took a wagon ride at the Bar J
and enjoyed a scrumptious meal and show there, chuckwagon style
Floated the Snake River
and spotted local wildlife
Boated across Jenny Lake
and hiked to Hidden Falls
then to Inspiration Point
and back in time for Craft Night
We saw gysers, and mud pots and hot pots galore
Including, of course, Old Faithful (several times since we stayed at the Inn)
And lots of bison
And we even managed to get a few great family photos

Lova La Vida

2009-05-29T22:43:00.003-04:00

Normally it has to be Sunday for me to listen to Jon Schmidt. But throw a cello into anything and I'm hooked. If there's one instrument I could go back and learn as a kid and stick with (so I could be really great as an adult) it would be the cello. It adds such a richness to any piece, don't you think?

historia da missao

2009-05-29T14:05:00.003-04:00

Back when I got off my mission in 2004, my mission president challenged all of us to write our Historia da Missão {mission (hi)story} that we could keep as a solid record of all of our experiences. Throughout my life, and especially my mission, I have been an avid journal-writer. Even though I had several journals full of my daily musings, I thought it would be great to have a more consolidated record of those 18 life-changing months.

I started by writing a consecutive list of topics I wanted to cover - receiving the call, my areas, companions, baptisms, funny stories, etc. I began to write and before I knew it I had over twenty pages of material. I still had several topics that I hadn't even begun to describe with the detail I wanted to remember. And as the days and weeks and months went by, I slowly forgot about my Historia.

Until yesterday.

I was going through the external hard drive, looking through old files, folders and documents and there it was. I started reading through it and was surprised at some of the things I'd already forgotten - like when my district in the MTC set the record for eating the most bowls of cereal on our last p-day before heading to the field (oh, the shame!) - but with a renewed enthusiasm to get it done. I realize that as more time goes on, the clarity of those experiences will continue to fade. So I'm going back to work. I've pulled out all the journals, letters, and photos I could find. It will be a big project, with lots of scanning, writing and editing, but I'm determined to get it done. And when I finish, I'll reward myself by getting it all put together in a pretty, bound book.

ready for the pickin

2009-05-28T16:05:00.002-04:00

I'd say my spinach is about ready, wouldn't you?

poplar as a chair

2009-05-28T13:44:00.004-04:00

Back in the depth of gray winter, I decided to spice up my life by taking a community class with my friend Mandy. We took "Make An Adirondack Chair" at West High. For seven weeks we spent a few hours each Thursday night in the wood shop transforming raw lumber into beautiful Adirondack chairs. The price for the class has since gone up, but at the time $35 to walk away with a handmade hardwood chair was a steal by any comparison. Overcoming my fear of most power tools was just a bonus.

Halfway through the class I decided to make two chairs (who wants to sit alone?) and thus walked out of the last night at the high school with my arms full of jigsawed and sanded - but not quite assembled - chair pieces. Over Memorial Day weekend I finally found some time to put pieces together and Mandy helped me remember the final steps of assembly the other night. I'm very close to finishing the second chair as well, but for now I guess I'll be sitting alone.

Part of you History #4

2009-05-24T15:25:00.002-04:00

In the spring of 2002 I was gallivanting around Europe studying the history of art, eating chocolate and pastries at every opportunity and trying to dream up a scheme that would let me land there for a longer period of time in the future. In particular, I had fallen in love with Brugge, Belgium and all of its charm.

From my journal May 24, 2002

This morning at breakfast we were not greeted by the sweet little lady who usually serves us. Instead a grumpy man who looked very unhappy was manning the tables. We knew we would be on the go all day (leaving Brugge and traveling to Amsterdam), so we each grabbed an extra piece of baguette and left the breakfast room. Unfortunately, I was the last to leave which meant that I got chased out of the breakfast room by the grumpy old man yelling in broken English, "Excuse me, you eat what you want in here. You take, you pay!" He repeated it a few times while he stared down at the floor and I just said, "Oh, well we didn't know." "You take, you PAY," he screamed, "and tell your friends too!" What do you do? Baguette in hand, I climbed the stairs to my third floor room to let my roommates know what was up. He ended up charging us each four euros. At that point I was like, "Brugge, you're done" but then we went ouside to walk to the station and I fell in love with it all again.

{photo I took in Ghent, Belgium}

the kitchen

2009-05-22T11:35:00.005-04:00

Nothing says 1954 like knotty pine! Of all of the areas of the house, I think the kitchen got the least amount of TLC and updating from the previous owners. We do have a nice tile floor and back splash, and granite tile counter tops, but to me the cupboards are a little dated. I'd love to refinish or paint them at some point, but that's not really at the top of my list right now.

We do, however, need a solution for the windows. Here are some photos of what the kitchen looks like now. Oh, and our everyday dishes are fiesta ware in lots of colors with most of the kitchen accents and serving pieces in red.

So if you've got great fabric ideas for the roman shades, let me know!

house projects

2009-05-21T14:34:00.004-04:00

There are a number of things I hope to do in the coming months to take our new dwelling from house to home. For now we've just been trying to keep up with some of the challenges that inherently come with home ownership - from finally discovering that a plastic dinosaur lovingly left half way down our toilet pipes was what caused it to stop flushing, and finding a loose wire nut that kept half of the house without electricity for a few days, to warding off termites that decided to make their home (and feast) in our garage, we (Spencer, mostly) have been pretty busy. There have been more surprises, but I'll spare you. Here's my latest in house projects:

Edible Garden: One of the things I've enjoyed most about owning a home is having a yard. We have two lovely mature ash trees in the back, plenty of grass, and a retaining wall that creates a lower section of the yard. It's been the perfect spot for a garden. I've planted 16 square feet of veggies, plus some more traditional rows. It's been fun to care for the plants and watch them grow. So far, I think they're making pretty good progress.
Roman Shades: Another thing I'm thinking about are the kitchen windows, which face west. This means lots of great light, but it can also be a really hot and blinding place to spend the late afternoon. To help filter the light and keep the kitchen cool we have plans to put up some shades. At first I was thinking about a bamboo shade, but then I saw this idea to DIY roman shades with the fabric of your choice.The key would be finding just the right fabric. Thoughts?

go big or go home.

2009-05-21T09:01:00.006-04:00

What about if you want to go big at home? I love our new house and it's comfortable neutral palette, but making the place "ours" has been more of a challenge than I anticipated. Of course to do this, I need a few additional pieces of furniture, photos printed for all of our empty frames, and the courage to actually hang something on the wall.

I wish I had enough courage to pull off something as stunning as Design Mom's most recent project: painting the piano (green!!!!)
I've been wanting to set up a little "music nook" in our basement where our piano (came with the house!) and guitars reside. I intend to hang some of the postcard prints I bought at the British Portrait Gallery - oh-so-many-moons-ago - of some of my favorite musicians from the other side of the pond and those "let it be" lyrics scribbled on a napkin. But don't you think painting the piano some bold, glossy color would make it all the more interesting? Yeah, me too.

Oh, and you can read more about Design Mom's endeavor here.

last night

2009-05-08T23:14:00.004-04:00

The weather here lately has been stunning. The grass is green, the sky is blue, and the air is warm. Last night when Spencer got home from work, we had a picnic on our backyard lawn before walking along one of our favorite streets, admiring the blossoming trees and listening to the stream, heavy and full, gush out of the canyon. Season 1 of LOST had finally arrived at the library (to help convert Spencer to my latest addiction) and I was anxious to pick it up. Of course we scoured the music collection as well, selecting a choice few jazz, classic rock, and indie artists that will accompany us in the car for the next few weeks. We walked home and chatted with dear neighbors from our old ward (two whole blocks away) as the sun slowly dropped. We came home and Spencer popped Gladys Knight (his pick) into the stereo. We danced in the kitchen to Midnight Train to Georgia as the very last speckles of sunshine freckled the room and finally fell to night. It was just one of those nights... when for a moment, all seemed right with the world.