Plum Stitches

mini breather

I hate to say it, but I'm relieved the Christmas frenzy is over and can catch up on some sleep!  We managed to only receive one toy for Chloe that requires batteries.  I know she loves all the talking toys, but they start to drive me bonkers, especially when Jim and I catch ourselves singing their little tunes.  Chloe was also more intrigued by the unwrapping of gifts than the actual gifts themselves.

It's really nice out today and we spent the morning at the playground with some old and new friends, pretty much wiped Chloe out (always a bonus!) 

Have a Happy New Year.

happy holidays!

Just a quick post, before more craziness begins for us.  We're headed to my sister-in-law's house this afternoon to celebrate with Jim's family.  Tomorrow we're off mid-day to my Dad's side of the family.  My mom and step-father made the trip down from Vermont and have been great at entertaining Chloe (I guess someone was listening to my whining the other day :-).

We're about to ice the Buche de Noel.  A few more photos of the accessories that will decorate the log.  These are made from Marzipan, the acorns still need a few finishing touches and the pear isn't really appropriate, but a friend made these last week and I couldn't resist.  I used this recipe and the stems are whole cloves.

I had some sleep issues last night and was up at 3am (yes, still haven't gone back to bed).  My grandmother is notorious for waking up this early and staying up, of course she goes to bed at about 6pm.  Hopefully this was more a case of slight stress and not a hereditary trait.

Have a happy holiday week!

baking frenzy

My knitting needles and sewing machine have been collecting dust!  Earlier this week I had several friends from the neighborhood over to make Buche de Noel's.  After experimenting last year, I decided it might be fun to make them as a group, and we did.  It's amazing that this complicated cake can be broken down into simple steps and come out looking like a yule log.

Here are the meringue mushrooms, at least the first batch of them.  Although I piped these, Jim gets full credit for the assembly (using melted chocolate).  I'm making another one for Christmas Eve at my sister-in-laws and will have some pictures next week.

In the parenting area, I'm afraid I've been a little burned out recently.  Maybe it's that Chloe recently turned 2, but she used to be so good at entertaining herself.  Now she wants me to be her constant playmate, which is fine some of the time, but not all the time. 

She goes two mornings a week to a toddler drop-off program down the street where she plays with a group of kids her age, that's been great, but...Maybe I've been a little depressed that a few friends in the neighborhood with kids her age recently went back to work and now have full time nannies.  That combined with winter setting in has left a vacuum in our schedule.  I do wonder if I'd be happier back at work full time, but never seem to come to a conclusion.  Part-time would be great, but those positions seem to be few and far between.  Alright, enough of my rambling about career and parenthood.

I've been on a Mexican/Latin food kick recently.  I spent one Sunday afternoon making red mole, which was delicious, well worth the complicated instructions and time.   We've also been hitting our favorite restaurants around the city on our nights out.  One week it was Los Dos Molinos (good, but the margaritas needed more simple syrup), last week we went to La Palapa (yum-my all around)  and then last night we went to a new place (at least to us) in SOHO, Papatzul (very good as well).  Tonight, I'm making chiliquiles, just had a hankering for them.  Now I have a serious hankering for a margarita, if only Jim would get home soon!

That's it for now - have a great night!

another hat and cookies

One more hat, almost complete.  This is for my cousin, who age-wise is really more like my niece.  Yarn, details to come as soon as I'm finished.

I went on a bit of cookie baking and eating bender this morning.  Tomorrow night, the Moms group that I'm part of is having a cookie exchange and tonight, is my book club meets.  I thought I'd cover both nights with a double batch of these Double Chocolate cookies.   The recipe is from a Martha Stewart Holiday cookie magazine from 2005.  They have the right balance of salty/sweet chewiness to them, that makes them irresistible!

I did have a slight mishap, thinking that I could melt the milk chocolate in the microwave (duh, I knew that couldn't be done, but I was in a rush).  Instead of the milk chocolate, I used bittersweet and white chocolate chunks.  I feel like Cookie Monster, I really didn't eat that many of them, just one too many and now I have a stomach ache.  Regardless, of my tummy woes, they're quite delicious and I highly recommend making a batch.

gifts

Am I the only person out there that decides less than a month before Christmas that I want to make something for everyone?  I do this every year, and you can imagine the result - no handmade gifts for anyone.  Well, maybe I squeak out one or two.  And every year I vow that come August, I'll get busy making gifts.  Maybe 2008 will be the year for me.

Take this gourd to the left, as an example.  My Mom grew these in her garden a few summers ago for me.  My big plan was to make gourd birdhouses for a few family members.  I suppose the key word here would be future bird houses.  They've sat in my laundry room for at least a year, but it appears this is their lucky year!

Yesterday I bought paint and the spray shellac for them.  By the way, the spots are just natural discoloration that occurs as they dry.  I'll keep you posted on my progress.

If you haven't seen them already, check out the little ornaments that Jared at Brooklyn Tweed knits every year.   Now these are small enough to knock out with a few weeks until Christmas

I did cast on for a Koolhaas, thinking I might be able to make one as a gift.  Doesn't look like that will happen, unless I magically become proficient with the pattern.  I also started another hat for, my cousin.  Who knows, this may be a handmade Christmas after all?

That's it for now, Chloe and I are off to a playdate with some friends in the neighborhood.

happy friday

So...what do you think of this?  Remember the new door to our bathroom, well I finally ordered the door knob.  I'm not too sure about the color, I guess I thought it would be a bit different.  I do like the design, I'm just not so sure about the color.  It just came, so I haven't held it up to the door yet, which will be the true test. 

This knob came from The House of Antique Hardware.  For any of you renovators out there, the new issue of This Old House has a list of their top resources for renovators. 

I did finish another little hat, this time for Chloe.  It's a bit long for her, definitely fits her head better than the one from last spring.  I've also almost finished the slippers, at least the knitting part.

Pattern:  Kim's Hats from Last Minute Knitted Gifts

Needles:  Size 7 circular, using the 'magic loop' method
Size:  Toddler (fits my daughter who just turned 2, with a bit of room to grow into)
Yarn:  Koigu in brown (from my stash) and the pink is Berrocco Ultra Alpaca
Notes:  I'm not sure the Koigu is the best yarn for a child's hat.  It's not as warm and soft as the Berrocco or the Blue Sky Alpaca (perfect!).  But, I do love the variegated texture that's created from the dying process

Holiday craziness has set in around our house.  Still no tree (probably this weekend), but I feel like every night of the week is quickly filling up.  All good stuff, just kind of tiring, I suppose that's why most people go into hibernation come January. 

true love

oh, how we adore our puppy...

retail therapy

I had a very early Doctor's appointment in the city this morning, so Chloe, Jim and I trekked in together.  Chloe went with Jim to work and I headed off to the Doctor's office.  We loaded the stroller with lots of toys for Chloe to play with in Jim's office, all in all it worked out pretty well.

After picking Chloe up, we made a few stops on our way to the train station for the trip home.  I just love, love Tinsel Trading.  If you're ever visiting or live in the city and haven't been there, it's worth a trip.  They have gorgeous vintage and new trimmings.  For some reason I was drawn to these numbers.  I'm planning to hang them in the transom above our door for the holidays.  Depending on how they look, they may have a new permanent home.

A few other purchases...

holidays

We had our first snow of the season yesterday.  Beautiful to wake up to, but sadly, gone by the end of the day.  The snow made for a perfect day to haul out the Christmas decorations, although we haven't gotten our tree yet.

On Saturday, I tagged along with a friend from the neighborhood to the flower district in the city for garland and wreaths.  I'm so glad I went!  I brought home garland for our ironwork and wreaths for our doors and gate.  Much, much nicer than what I've bought in the past.  We put it all up yesterday in the snow (how appropriate!).  I just love the little eucalyptus berries on the wreath, which you can't really see in this picture.  It still needs a bow for a splash of red.

I've been on a movie-seeing bender since our trip to London.  On the plane, I watched No Reservations (so-so), and Brick Lane.  I loved Brick Lane, beautifully shot, based on the book by Monica Ali about a Bangladeshi woman who marries and moves to London in the 1990's.

While in London, we saw Elizabeth:  The Golden Age.  We both thoroughly enjoyed, particularly given that we were in England at the time.  And lastly, Friday night we saw Love in the Time of Cholera, Jim was dreading going to see this, but enjoyed it.  I loved the book, which I've read numerous times and thought the movie was good.

My book group is reading The Inheritance of Loss.  I'm about 3/4's of the way through and really like the book - would definitely recommend it to others.  I think I mentioned awhile ago that I joined a book group.  It's been really great and motivating for reading.  I used to be such a big reader, but seem to have been derailed since having Chloe.  The group has definitely gotten me back on track and the women in the group are terrific!

Our good friend Mark lent me his Macro lens for our Canon Rebel.  Wow -who knew I could take such cool pictures with this lens!   We have a large zoom lens that we us for the camera - takes great pictures of Chloe in action, but it's pretty limiting if you want to take pictures in side.

Jim brought these gorgeous bracelets back from his trip to India - exactly what I wanted!  One problem though, they're best suited probably for an eight year old.  I did managed to squeeze my giant hands into them once, but that was it.  Guess we'll save them for Chloe.