Wednesday 31 December 2008

Nursery Rhymes (with Curse - ery)

Well, the nursery is all put together. It wasn't easy, it wasn't fun, but hey, nobody got divorced.



(that might be because I waddled away when it started to get really loud)



The painting was done at the end of November, and looks fantastic - sky blue on top, and grass green on the bottom. We still need to apply the super-cute yellow-and-orange jungle animal decals to the walls, but otherwise, it's all set.



The rocking chair, bought second-hand from Laurel, was partially reupholstered a few months ago. Fabric, cushion, staple gun, go. No worries, especially for the Domestic Goddess. I wanted to make a cushion and some curtains, as well, but someone has issues with their sewing machine.



Ok, I'll admit it. It's me.



I used to sew so many of my own clothes (like my green dress! Who didn't love the green dress? The Amish LOVED my green dress...), but when I finished university, suddenly I started having problems with my machine. It was always loopy. The tension was off. It was frustrating and demoralizing. So I gave up sewing.



But, for the curtains, I knew I'd have to crack open the beast and give it the old college try. Procrastination, of course, helps one avoid an unpleasant situation, which brings us to Christmas Eve.



The crib had been put together a week or two before, and after several angry calls to Costco (we ordered it from their online site) to report damage, we decided that we could live with it (still waiting to hear about a discount on it), and opened up the dresser.



Which was pretty well destroyed.



We took it back to the warehouse, and ordered a new one online, hoping that it would arrive on time (tick tick tick!), then sat back to wait.



The new dresser arrived on the 23rd, and I decided to spend a pleasant afternoon assembling it. Kaff. Well, let's just fast forward to the afternoon of the 24th, when I finally broke down and asked for help. The door wasn't closing properly. The drawers kept falling off their tracks.

This is when I stepped away. By 11:55 pm, though, it was all finished, and we shared a Merry Christmas kiss.



AND THEN, on Boxing Day, I opened up the sewing machine. Nothing like facing the demons head on, right?



The first thing I did was call my sister, to have her walk me through the threading of the machine, since I figured that's where my problems lay. Turns out that my breaking the spool holder thingy as I opened the machine (oops) was the best thing I could have done - by using the auxiliary spool holder (Tracey told me all about it; she broke hers about 10 years ago and had been using the backup ever since), the first test line I sewed was perfect. So, the DG was off! Nothing would stand in her way!



The curtains are white flannellette, with a broad stripe of yellow flannellette on the bottom, distinguished by a ribbon of orange and yellow polka-dots (which matches the jungle animals perfectly!) - I even lined them. All without a pattern. I was pretty happy with them, and Chris was totally impressed. Go me!



And the room, it looks lovely.




















Above, the crib, with the ducky quilt that Mom made.


Ooo... fancy, profesh-looking curtains
and matching chair! (I expect that the top cushion will shape itself as it gets used.)

Monday 29 December 2008

Huff Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Our little family celebrated quietly yet extravagantly this year - Santa and family spoiled us without mercy, and even the Huffalump was spoiled, despite the fact that it's not here yet!

We slept in a bit, and were woken with a phone call from my parents, then staggered down to a breakfast of freshly-baked cinnamon buns, mandarins, and tea/coffee (will need to tweak the Christmas menu a bit for next year...for example, the candy group was missing in its entirety), then a nice bit of stocking opening, before tackling the too-much-generosity of gifts under the tree.

The afternoon flew by, with more phone calls to and from family, as I made an apple pie and Chris handled the meat and potatoes (and broccolis and carrots and -- yech -- turnips). Dinner was delicious; we had decided on a nice roast beast (that the Grinch himself carved), and it was amazing. Yes, even the turnip. After dinner, we played a round of Killer Bunnies, then waddled off to bed.

I doubt that next year will be as peaceful!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!
Karen

Thursday 18 December 2008

Week 37: Misty Watercolour Memories...

...of the way we were....



Ok, so what better way to show off the FULL TERM BELLY than to squeeze my girth back into the same outfit I wore in the first belly shot?



Ok, truth time: I'm too "thrifty" to buy new jammies, and the others were in the wash. But isn't it funny?



At left, me at 5 weeks, still ab-tastic, full of pep and vinegar, excited for the weeks ahead (ok, in reality, I cut my head out of the shot because of the shocked-and-appalled-what-the-heck-have-we-done look on my face).








At right, me last night, again with the head cut off, but mostly for comparison purposes. And also, my head is wrapped in a towel. A lot of the pep has subsided, but I still have THAT LOOK once in a while, trust me.





Chris thinks that I have "dropped", which means that, according to my multitude of books and references, labour is, at most, 4 weeks away. Kaff. Thanks, science! All I know is that I am even more intensely uncomfortable, ungainly, and unwieldy than usual, and I'd be happy with any day now!!! But, we wait.


In other, uncomfortable, topics of discussion, people with class, etiquette, and good sense, please stop reading now.



Several people have asked whether we are registered or not.



(embarrassed sigh)



First, let me say that we got ourselves (ok, Chris got ME) into this mess (ha ha), and we're not doing the baby shower or gift request thing at all. We've already picked up all the must-haves, mostly thanks to the generosity of already-parents who have passed on their gently-used stuff! BUT, for the purpose of the people that HAVE asked us to (can you picture me typing this with a bag over my head?), we have registered at Babies 'R' Us. And aside from that, books or 3-month-plus outfits would be welcome, but really, really, really not necessary.



/end embarrassing greedy/mercenary bit



(head is still hung with shame)



Mostly, as we proceed (onwards!), I'd really appreciate the gift of staying in touch with my family and friends, even if I'm not the one picking up the phone or sending the letters/emails - please bear with me/us over the next little while, and don't give up on me!

Friday 12 December 2008

You asked for it

Ok, against my better judgement, I'm posting these shots. Those who are prone to nightmares, you've been warned!

I give you:

THE GINGERBREAD MEN! (dun dun dun)

Chris' interpretation resembles a demon with glowing red eyes:






















And this is my creation, a screaming banshee:







Sweet dreams!
Moo-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!!

Monday 8 December 2008

DG: Gingerbread House

In an effort to festive up the House of Huff, Her Huffness decided to purchase a gingerbread house kit. As a child, I used to make one of these from scratch (well, from graham crackers), and I remember it being a lot of fun, easy to do, and delicious to eat, a month later, when the whole thing is rock solid and needs a hammer to break it and really good teeth to eat it with.




So, why not? (I have good teeth.)




I picked up the kit at Costco, and decided to research as much as I could before I started to build it - I didn't see the instructions at first, so I went to the Create A Treat website, watched the instructional video (hosted by a 10-year-old boy, so I was sure I'd be successful!), and checked out the gallery.




Obviously, one picture stands out from all the rest. I figured that, if three grown men could have this much fun decorating a gingerbread house, the weekend was sure to be a blast. I mean, what could be more fun on a Saturday night???


I forwarded the picture, enthusiastically, to His Huffness, who replied back that he would be glad to help out. Note the keen-yet-somewhat-pained smile on my helper.




Well, it didn't quite match the hilarity of the guys in the gallery, but we did ok. Chris was in charge of the front of the house, and I was in charge of the back. There "may" have been a bit of profanity during the initial stages, but we ended up doing quite a bang-up job of it, if I do say so myself. Afterall, with gingerbread house art, really, if you mess something up, stick another gob of icing on it, and cover it with candy. Done.


We also each fashioned a very creepy, scary-looking gingerbread man, which are somewhat nightmare-inducing, so I've spared my readers of any photos.

All in all, though, aside from the decorative aspect, the best part of this project is that my living room now smells like gingerbread. And now we start the countdown to when the house is fair game as a snack...


In other news, I had my 35-week checkup on Friday. The Huffalump is still floating head down, and other than the doctor refusing to say out loud, "Why, that's the most streamlined, smallest-headed baby I've ever palpated!", everything went fine. I'm as healthy as a horsie, and we just need to wait till the 'lump engages itself and decides to make an appearance. I have a feeling that the gingerbread house may be long gone by then.










Wednesday 3 December 2008

Week 35: Seriously, now.

We had our first real snowfall last night. It was beautiful, an icing-sugar snow that Chris was able to just sweep off the driveway this morning.



I was picking up baking supplies in Trevor (and yes, of course I played with the handbrake, but there wasn't enough snow or ice yet... patience...), and admiring the Christmas lights, and of course, what should come on the radio but "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas".



Needless to say, I was a wreck by the time I got home.



Despite the sobs, the Domestic Goddess managed to bake a double batch of cherry-coconut macaroons, freeze 6 dozen of them, clean up, and help around the house a bit before I fell into bed. Well, before I hefted myself up into bed, anyway.



The renovations are almost done! The painter comes in today, so in another week, tops (fingers crossed!), maybe I can build a crib and dresser or something. It doesn't look like I'm very pregnant, does it?



Speaking of that, everybody into the pool! We've developed a nice little baby pool for the Huffalump, with scoring and a well-formatted spreadsheet and everything, so start emailing in your guesses on:

  • Date (my estimated due date is January 7th)
  • Time (to the closest hour)
  • Sex (50/50 chance!)
  • Length (in inches)
  • Weight (in lbs and oz)


The prize, so far, is bragging rights, but we're open to suggestions!

Original artwork on the wall is by my Very Talented brother-in-law, Ryan.

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