A random mashup of photos

(Mostly of my gorgeous kid)

(late) Felt food Friday: Popsicles!

Sorry for the late posting. But look at those pretties! Here's the tutorial, I followed it except for the glue part--just inserted the popsicle sticks into the stuffed felt and called it a day. If Wugs pulls it apart in 2 seconds flat I'll have to remedy that.

I make healthy popsicles for Wugs. Things like thinned out purple carrot/beet juice/apple juice/yogurt/blended fruit combos. She's not a big water drinker and so I try to push the fluids any way possible, which evolved into popsicles. The kiddo won't sip twice at a smoothie but freeze it? She's all over it. Oh gosh does Wugs go apey over her paka's, as she calls them--so much so that she started automatically asking for them the second we'd plop her down in the tub (where she eats popsicles to save Mama on cleanup time). Now it's back to being a 'treat' status and let's just say that it's just one more word that we have to spell out when in front of her now.

Related: I just bought the book Paletas and the first popsicle on my radar to make is an apricot and chamomile flower combo. Doesn't that sound dreamy? Also, am seriously considering buying a Zoku quick pop maker; my current popsicle mold is worn out and in need of an upgrade (I was 9 months pregnant at the peak of summer! Two words: watermelon popsicles.), plus the whole 9-minutes-and-you're-done thing is way tempting.

In her first uniform, as promised.

Mila is #7. Confession: Everyone is #7 ;)

That girl, the tiny one there with a smile that could light up the NYC electric grid? That's my daughter.

Spring

To celebrate, the teepee got a new necklace! Inspired from Norske Interior Blogger via pinterest. As I was painting those egg carton flowers I totally thought this was going to be a craft fail...but I'm actually loving it all lit up and cheery.

I can't wait for Wugs to wake up tomorrow (not to early please, Wugs!) and see it.

Wugs meets the Golden Gate Bridge.

Yesterday we bundled up, took a drive to the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge on the Marin Headlands side, and walked out into the middle of that beautiful landmark to look up up up. I was acutely aware that the last time I had walked onto the Golden Gate Bridge to take similar pictures looking up was in August of 2009. We were literally beginning the first hour of a cross-country road trip/move back home to Florida after having been away for 5 years. Steve had stayed behind with the cats in the car, cleaning up cat vomit already I think. It was just me, the camera, and all those tourists. And now we were standing here again, with our daughter. Still weighty words, and always will be.

These days Mila wants to pat pat pat or kiss or huck (hug) just about everything interesting which is, well, everything to her. Which is why if you were on the Golden Gate Bridge at approximately 3 pm yesterday you might have seen two crazies holding their daughter in a puffy down jacket up to the rail so she could lean down and kiss the filthy thing. Because sometimes just a pat pat pat won't do.

And Happy St. Paddy's Day!

I learned this year that it's offensive to write St. Patty's and am realizing that faux pas is everywhere! It was just Mila and mama today and we were quite the piggies starting with lucky charms for breakfast and ending with slices of a rainbow cake I made. For dinner I made kimchi quesadillas minus the spice--get it? Kimchi...cabbage...Irish...
They were delicious, actually. Leaps and bounds better than the too-sweet cake.

My little leprechaun. She kept me on my painted-green toes today with new words, a sudden new insistence to attempt dressing herself, and refusing to nap. At least she let me have some quiet time where I was able to read a little more of this book (am trying to finish it before watching the movie, waiting patiently in its red envelope). She climbed up onto the chair to sidle in next to me and squeal through a few books herself (new favorites: I Love You Through and Through and You Are My I Love You). She's my heart and soul, this one.

Felt food Friday: Something green...

Sorry this is late (you were at the edge of your seat, weren'tcha?!) but yesterday evening was one of those nights where even the walk into the kitchen to grab the USB cable seemed daunting.

So. Pears! No, not particularly Irish, but none of the tutorials I could find for cabbage or potatoes were calling out to me. Plus Mila loves pears. I don't even think she'd be able to chew up corned beef, despite having a full set of baby teeth minus two (2nd year molars this is not an invitation!).

I just didn't think they would turn out quite so gigantic, especially compared to the other felt food I've made so far. If I did this over, I'd scale down the pattern (found here).
 

Origami birds.

How timely, on the 101st anniversary of Akiro Yoshizawa's birth I'm posting pictures of our revamped origami crane mobile. Somehow this project, made when pregnant with Mila (see original pictures here), found its way to California and transplanted itself in our living room. Now I've added a few colored cranes into the mix but in looking at these pictures...and looking at the all-white one...I think I prefer the latter. I'm such a sucker for that clean and fresh look. Plus it's not like the color white stands a chance if it's anywhere near the ground, so I might as well take advantage of it with the ceiling decor, no?

p.s. I was going to write how Mila never seems to pull on the birds...until I tried to take a picture of the mobile and she came over, yanked on it, and took down 9 or so birds in the process. Well.

p.p.s. Yes. Absolutely. Those are Christmas lights hanging up on our walls. They're staying up there. 

Recent milestones.

*You won't see these in yo mama's baby book ;)

First pickle: February 23rd.
First ferry ride: February 26th. Larkspur to San Franciscooooooooo!
First natural disaster/act of God/what have you: An EARTHQUAKE in the early morning hours of March 5th. (for the record it was Steve's and my first quake as well and unsettling to say the least. Not our first natural disaster though. We are from Florida after all.
First conformity (as Steve put it): March 7th at Lil' Kickers Soccer (complete with uniform! Ohmygosh! Pictures are coming!)
First astroturf experience: March 7th, see above.
First taste of Ethiopian food: March 7th at Cafe Colucci

Introduction to the joy of dunking one's warm cookie in cold milk: March 12th :)

Felt Food Friday: 'Nanas!

How could I make felt food to outfit a play kitchen and not include a banana?!  They were Mila's first word after pa, one day she was with Steve at the grocery store and out of the blue she insistently started pointing and saying "nana nana nana" repeatedly. And that is how nanas came to hold cult status in our house. I made just one for now. For various reasons I've somehow weaned myself off coffee this week so am trying to be extra gentle on myself with more rest, more planning ahead the night before, etc. Hopefully I'm over that hump soon.

Our nature table: spring

I thought I'd share a few pictures of our nature table right now. Hello color! Painted rocks and even the embroidery thread had to join in on the fun. Our nature table is an old Ikea coffee table which I painted with chalkboard paint last year. Here is where I put Mila's many 'treasures' that she finds on our walks...just walking from the front door out to the car often will turn up a few pebbles...twigs...and the like. Just a few months ago for Christmas we had our little wooden Nativity scene there (and of course the figures got moved several times daily by someone with adorably chubby fingers), and now here it is getting close to Easter and there will soon be colored eggs on there (I'm excited to dye eggs with Wugs!). 

wooden eggs in felted nest from apple n amos