Here Comes the Sun

Oh, what a tease! It was 62 degrees today. There was a spot on my shoulder that felt warm from the sunlight! I wanted to take Emmy to the playground, but it's still too soggy. I really didn't want to chase after Emily knee-deep in muck. 

 The nice weather has been great weather for cleaning. I love opening all the windows and vacuuming, changing the sheets, washing the floors, and all that fun stuff while fresh air runs through the house. 

 I'm off for now....

A Sick Day for Amos McGee - Phillip C. Stead

(After some debate on whether to put this here or on my book blog, I chose to put it here, as this is my "mommyhood" blog.)

 Amos McGee is a sweet elderly man who works at zoo and has befriended many of the animals. One morning, Amos wakes up with a cold, but his friends stop by to cheer him up!

  I bought this book on a whim after falling in love with the gorgeous wood-print illustrations. It's quickly become a favorite "snuggle up and read a bedtime story book."

Grade: A+

Sugar Cookie Bouquet

 I made this "bouquet" for Emily's Valentine's Day party tomorrow. :-)

Valentine's Day and Crochet

The reservations were set. The babysitter was lined up. The outfit was planned. It was going to be a perfect Valentine's Day (well, pre-Valentine's Day) evening with my sweetheart. And then Emily threw up. Not only did she throw up, but she threw up on the blanket I've been crocheting. I mean sure, better the (washable) blanket than the couch, but still. Square.on.the.blanket.

 So we'll spending the evening at home tonight. We'll order take out and watch a movie. Last year, Steve and I were sick. I had mono, courtesy of my teenaged brother with whom I accidentally shared a glass, and Steve threw up. (Sigh) Better luck next year.

The Pets

This is Alice. We adopted her as a kitten about a year ago. Rescued from a feral colony, she was teeny tiny, easily spooked, and skinny. Now she's fat and still a little skittish sometimes, but very affectionate when she gets comfortable.







This is Sprinkles. She's a lot cuter in person, but she hates having her picture taken. In fact, she was likely halfway across the room before the flash faded when I took this picture. She's about 12, and not quite as playful as she used to be. And by that I mean, she now has the activity level of a normal cat.

This is Red. As weird as it is to admit this, I adore this little fish. Every time I walk near his bowl, he swims over and looks at me. :-)

Arts and "Cwaps"

Happy Friday, all!

Emily has been enjoying "arts and cwaps" these past several days, so long as they involve scissors and paints. We're still working on the Valentine's Day stuff, though I think I'm more into it than she is.










I couldn't get Emily interested in these "mittens," she much prefers....

                                                                              Paints!

Wishin' and a-Hopin'.

 I was looking out across my backyard earlier, remember what it used to look like under these two feet of iced-over snow. Halfway through the yard is the flower garden I ripped out in September with hopes of building a goldfish pond. Fifty feet behind and to the right of that is the little "shrub" island that had been so overgrown, it took a chainsaw to bring it all down. Years ago, flowering shrubs and bushes grew here, which seems so hard to believe. I'm hoping some of it will grow back in May or June. Then there's the big garden. Once upon a time vegetables grew in this garden, but that was a long long time ago. Now it's wild and overgrown. Once this snow melts, the ground thaws and spring comes, Steve and I are pulling out the rototiller and turning that mess back into a garden. My own gardens! And maybe a goldfish pond...

More Arts and Crafts

It's still snowy and icy here, so Emmy and I have been trying to find fun things to do inside. It's still a little early, but we started working on some Valentines.

This is the outside...

And a little message on the inside!

Emily chose orange because that's the color of Nemo! She wasn't too happy about the mittens being attached, so she separated them!

I made this little purple blankie in about a week. I was experimenting with a new technique for the border - it's ruffly!

Best Oatmeal Cookies Ever!

 On this snowy winter not-quite-afternoon, Emily and I are baking oatmeal cookies! I usually make oatmeal-raisin cookies, but today we decided to make oatmeal-chocolate chip-peanut butter chip cookies!

http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/02/thick-chewy-oatmeal-raisin-cookies/