Fill in the Blanks Friday

I am proud of: lots of things lately. I'm finally getting this mom thing down so between that and getting my hormones back to normal with a little help from that miracle called progesterone cream, I feel like a normal person again. I'm proud of the fact that I figure out what was wrong and got help before I really fell apart. Of course Isaac would probably say I did fall apart into a crazy mess, but whatever

This weekend I will: stay in the Mosier house just outside of Hood River with the whole Folsom fam. It will be fun, but considering we were originally going to be camping....renting a house is not as exciting. I'm planning some cool hikes though, and we are going to hit up the Fruit Loop, so it should be a good weekend. Plus, we couldn't watch the Olympics if we were camping, so I guess I'll count my blessings.

A secret dream I have is: someday I want to write a book. And have a crazy cool blog.

I can't handle: parents who don't discipline their children.

The most annoying thing is: when people don't pitch in, or when they aren't considerate of other people's time.

The most relaxing thing in the entire world is: an afternoon with absolutely nothing to do besides read a book and drink a Diet Coke in the sun.

I think everyone should: pay attention to the world around them. Educate yourself. Vote. (in that order, please).

*posting this from my phone....I'll fix the picture and add links and such when I get home....

When Life Gives You Lemons...

....Build a fire pit and roast hot dogs in your own backyard. 

We've been planning a camping trip with my family for almost a year now. We were going to go to Mt Lassen National Park, but that's a seven and a half hour drive, and when we discovered that long drives aren't the best with a baby, we scratched that idea and decided to go to Lost Lake in Mt Hood National Forest. 

And then....Ari caught chicken pox. 

It is a super mild case - only three little dots - and they haven't bothered her at all, but the doctor recommended not putting her through the stress of missed naps and unfamiliar places. 

So....Isaac bought a concrete fire ring (only $39 at the concrete pre-fab shop down the road? Yes, please!) and we roasted hot dogs in our backyard. 

It's a corner of our yard that we haven't done much to - unless you count cleaning out the two Christmas trees and carting out like 5 loads of brush - so it's nice to finally get something started out there. 

We contemplated setting the tent up and sleeping outside....but sleeping bags and rock-hard ground are only worth it if I'm in the forest miles away from cell phone service. 

BATMAN!

We've been waiting for this day since....well, since I watched The Dark Knight on opening day four years ago. I put "Watch Ari" on my mother-in-law's calendar like a month ago so there wouldn't be any question we would see The Dark Knight Rises on opening night.

What did I think? Well....it was amazing. Bane was an awesome villain. I usually hate Anne Hathaway but she fit the role and was a great Catwoman. I loved how the movie was all about Batman but at the same time, didn't revolve around him.

Before the movie we watched Batman Begins and The Dark Knight to get in the mood. Now I can't wait till TDKR comes out so we can watch all three on a rainy Saturday.*

*But I repeat myself. Let's face it, by the time in comes out, it will be winter and every Saturday will be rainy. Ugh.

Chalkboard Kitchen Door

I'm not sure when it happened, but my industrial design-obsessed husband has recently started pointing out how much he is liking rustic elements in home decor.

Imagine my surprise when the guy who usually likes cold concrete floors and super empty minimalist rooms suggested putting a chalkboard in our kitchen. Um, what? A chalkboard? You mean one of the trendiest rustic/homey elements in home design? The thing that I've been secretly craving but not saying anything about because I thought I would never get it? Are you sure we're talking about the same thing?

Love. 

Oregon is Awesome: Diamond Lake

Several months ago, our pastor dug up an old VHS copy of a video he shot at church camp a dozen years ago, got it converted into DVD format and brought it over for Isaac to watch. Of course I wasn't in the video, but it reminded me of how much fun I had as a kid at our church camps and made me wish Ari had the same opportunities as she grows up. Kristen and I consulted our phone calendars one night in the nursery, picked a weekend and informed Josh that our church was going camping. 

Besides the wicked mosquitoes and a miserable drive home with a baby who was tired of the car, we had a great weekend. Plus, I finally went to Crater Lake! How is it possible that I've lived in Oregon for almost twenty years and have never gone? 

On the way home, we hit up Tokatee Falls. (Note to self: hiking with baby in an Ergo is just a tad warm; buy a hiking pack before the next hike.) 

Words aren't necessary. The pictures are what I want to remember. 

PS. I love Oregon. It's super awesome. You can hike, beach walk and ski all in the same day. One of my favorite things is exploring our state so I'm going to collect our adventures under the super-original title "Oregon is Awesome" because, well, it is. 

Fresh Berry Pie

My first attempt at my mother-in-law's super amazing fresh berry pie turned out amazing, mostly because you can't go wrong with two pints of raspberries, a jello-based binder, and a graham cracker crust. We took it with us to visit Michael, Halley and baby Tad. Ari copied Michael and gave the baby kisses. We were too slow with the camera, but it was the cutest thing ever. 

Fresh Berry Pie

3/4 cup sugar 

2 tbsp corn starch

2 tbsp light corn syrup

1 cup cold water

2 tsp jello (choose the flavor depending on what kind of berry you're using)

Pie crust (regular or graham cracker)

Berries - enough to fill up your pie crust)

Whisk sugar, corn starch, corn syrup, and cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Whisk in jello and take off heat and cool. Fill your crust with berries and pour jello mixture over the top. Chill until jello is set up. 

Sickie

It's been so long that we've been sick that when Ari woke up with a 101 degree fever this morning, we made up our sick day tradition on the fly. Jammies, cartoons, and donuts will make you feel better even if your fever doesn't go down. 

Playing in the Yard

I feel silly, but I took a bunch of pictures with the goal of doing my first outfit post. Turns out all but one was out of focus and the one that did work wasn't cute at all.

On Me: Shirt:Ross / Cardi:Halogen / Skirt:Motherhood / Boots:Franco Sarto

On Ari: Jeans:Children's Place / Shirt:Carter's / Fleece:REI / Shoes:Robeez

So instead I took a bunch of pictures of Ari. Those turned out super adorable. Of course, it's not hard to take adorable pictures of this girl, but man....these ones turned out so so cute. There is something so sweet and innocent in her face. 

And then she starts digging in the dirt.....

And while she was digging in the dirt, I took pictures of my fuchsias...the ones Isaac calls old lady flowers. Oh well, I like them. 

PS. Looking at that picture makes me realize that I really need to move that skirt into the bin of maternity clothes in the back of my closet. Denim skirts are like the most important part of my wardrobe and I don't have one that fits right now. 

I made pretty food!

It's pretty common knowledge that if something that tastes good and looks pretty is made in our house, Isaac made it. He always says "you eat with your eyes first" so he takes time to style dinner every night. In fact, the new rule is that he has to dish up first so he can style and photograph his dinner while I'm throwing my food on my plate. Otherwise, I'll be waiting while he carefully arranges sprigs of cilantro.

Anyway, breakfast on Saturday looked pretty and tasted good. And I made it! I went a little crazy and yelled "I MADE GOOD FOOD!!!!" 

Waffles

2 cups flour

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

2 pinches salt

1 cup sour cream or greek yogurt

1 cup milk

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp canola oil

Stir together dry ingredients. Whisk sour cream and milk together, then whisk in eggs, vanilla and oil. Add to dry ingredients and mix. If desired, add berries. Cook according to waffle iron instructions. 

I used to stress out when I was eating this because of the cup of sour freaking cream. But I use greek yogurt instead and now I eat five waffles without feeling bad. 

*Just kidding about the five waffles part. 

I see a baby gate in the very near future....

And by "future" I mean tomorrow.

Someone learned how to climb the stairs yesterday.

Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the best dad a tiny girl could have. From the beginning, you've been more helpful than any other dad I know. Not only do I appreciate it, but I know your relationshiop with Ari will be strong because of the time you're investing now. Whether it's walking her back to sleep in the middle of the night, not being afraid to change dirty diapers, or making her laugh, you're doing a great job. We love you.

Happy Father's Day! 

Currently.

Reading: nothing, which is odd. I just finished Wuthering Heights the other day, and The Lost Symbol (by Dan Brown) a few days ago so I'm kind of lost. I have a stack of Grisham books that I picked up at the Keizer Friends of the Library book sale but I'm not really in the mood. So we'll see. I need some recommendations.

Watching: I finished Downton Abbry last night so....I'm watching it again! And we have the Hatfields and McCoys taped so we might watch it tonight. I've heard nothing but good things so I'm excited.

Anticipating: being done with the next few weeks. It's going to be busy, and my golf tournament is the 21st. I've run this tournament for six years now so it's a well oiled machine, but still...it's a pain in the butt.

Laughing about: Ari in the pool tonight. She loves to kick around and splash. It makes my heart happy to watch her splash up a storm and then act surprised when her face gets wet.

Listening to: nothing special. Whatever is on the radio. My latest pandora station is called Better Together...it makes me happy.

Eating: healthy things that will make the end of the baby weight go away! I went to EZ Orchards and resisted one of their amazing [huge] chocolate crinkle cookies. Our meals for this week are pretty healthy - started with tilapia and rice pilaf tonight....delicious.

Working on: finding some motivation to go to the gym. That's not actually true - I have the motivation, I just need to figure out how to make it work without taking time too much time away. I'm so protective of time with Isaac and Ari that I'm unwilling to take an hour to go run...but I need to figure it out cuz I really want to fit into my old jeans and post a better 5k time at my next race....you know, the one I haven't signed up for yet.

Wishing: that potential donors would call me back. That Isaac would get more work. That I would get more of those super fun Etsy Transaction emails - my sale on Saturday got me all excited so I posted everything I've been procrastinating but so far....nothing. And hardly any views either.

Behind the times

I was a little behind the times, but I caught up quickly. I think it took me no longer than three days to watch each season of Downton Abbey. I'm obsessed. How can I wait until January 2013 for the next season?!?

8 months old!

My tiny baby girl,

How did you get to be so big? What happened to my little baby who loved to snuggle and just slept and ate all day long?

Ariana, you are my favorite, smart, pretty, happy little girl. We tell you all the time that Jesus has given you a happy heart. You have a smile for everyone. Your eyes smile before your mouth does and it makes my heart happy every time.

You're on the go all the time. Since you figured out how to really crawl on Mother's Day, you haven't stopped. You see something across the room - whether it's a toy, a newspaper, an electric outlet, or (best of all) a shoe - and you go get it. You can play on the ground for hours.

You've been pulling yourself up on the couch and scooting along it for the past two weeks now. One of your favorite things is to hold onto our hands and walk for as long as we'll let you.

Much to your daddy's delight, you're a total foodie. You haven't turned down anything we give you. Sweet potatoes and pickles are still your favorite. You can feed yourself now, though most of the food ends up on the floor or squished all over your hands.

Things you like:
Dancing with daddy
Eating
Grammy
Winston, our neighbor's dog
Your glo-worm
Keys
Baths

Things you don't like
Getting dressed
Diaper changes
Being in the car for more than 45 minutes

If I could change one thing....you would sleep better at night. I still nurse you to sleep and you wake up at least twice at night, usually at 2 and 6 or 7. I nurse you back to sleep. It's not uncommon for you to wake up in between; most of the time, we can pat your back or bounce you back to sleep. I handle night times for the most part with daddy helping every couple nights or so.

Other than that, you're my favorite and you are so happy and fun to be around. I love you so much, Ari.

Cousins!

Ari and I went down to Corvallis to help Halley out and play with little Thad. We caught him with his eyes open for a few minutes and took this picture. The rest of the day he was either sleeping or eating.

The sun was out in the afternoon and Halley and I walked around downtown with Thad in the moby and Ari in the ergo. Apparently we looked like hippies because the because the lady in the children's boutique we went into pointed out the organic cotton and bamboo section and said we looked like we would like those clothes.

Weekend!

Date night/Avengers: success! We went up to Bridgeport to see The Avengers in IMAX. I didn't realize that it was also in 3D - which I hate - but getting a refund was too much of a pain. The only superheroes I'm obsessed with are Batman and Iron Man (or, more correctly, I should say I'm obsessed with Christian Bales and Robert Downey Jr) so Iron Man with a preview of Dark Knight Rises makes for a pretty awesome movie. Plus dinner and shopping with my super fun husband....yeah, it was a good date.

Saturday was the Salem Etsy Team Spring Sale.....fun, but not what I would classify as a success. I sold five things and made $44. Oh well. I'll take pictures and list everything on Etsy tomorrow and then take everything down to The Fussy Duck.

After the sale, we went to Raymond an Brittany's for a Minute to Win It game night. Brittany's game nights are the best. Cute kids, good food, fun people and lots of laughs - especially when we played the game where you have a get a cookie from your forehead to your mouth without touching it.

Sunday: church and a really good message that too many people missed, Hailey's 2nd birthday party, a nap, yard work and sun. Ari took two half hour naps and both times someone was holding her but she did just fine.

Yeah, this weekend was a success.

Unsafe but So Much Cuter

Loving her completely-not-up-to-safety-standards high chair! All the high chairs in the stores are plastic monstrosities and we don't like plastic. So while I'm searching antique stores for an old wooden high chair, T let me borrow the one her daughter used 18 years ago. 

Who knew squishing bananas with no shirt on could be so cute? 

Yum.

Chickpeas and chorizo is pretty out-of-the-box for me, but I was at Southpark (my new favorite restaurant) in Portland a few months ago and decided to be adventurous. It was probably the best thing that happened to my mouth since Little Big Burger. 

I have been wanting to try to recreate it for a while and when I saw chorizo at Whole Foods, I put it on this week's menu. Two things: 1) yum! 2) I made it myself! Pretty proud of myself. 

Next time I'm going to adapt the recipe and include corn, more potatoes and double the chorizo. 

After dinner we picked up Ari's new high chair and went to the Kroc Center. Our little girl loves water. Sooo excited for swim lessons. 

Thrifting Success

Ari's room was missing two things: a place for hanging up clothes (since Isaac uses the closet) and a place to put pictures and knick-knacks.

Problem solved. I found this shelf at Goodwill last week and Isaac spray painted it to match her room and cover up some knicks. I think it's adorable.

I had been holding off on buying kitschy things since there wasn't a place to put them but now I have no excuse. Watch out, Isaac! I know how much you love knick knacks :)

 Linkin' up: High on Thrifting

<3

Currently

Reading: House of Cards. I picked it up at the Teen Challenge thrift store during their 50% off sale. Political thrillers are usually annoying because things don't actually happen in smokey back rooms anymore but this one is set in the UK so I won't know if it's far-fetched. Plus, I think there is a movie coming out about it and I don't believe in seeing movies until I've read the book.

Watching: Um, Chopped All-Stars. I'm a big Michael Symon fan.

Thinking about: Raising money. How to juggle multiple bosses. Balancing work and family.

Loving: Ari, naturally. Embroidery.

Anticipating: Setting up my booth at The Fussy Duck! The Salem Etsy Spring Show on Saturday!

Listening to: Marchin On by One Republic.

Eating: Leftovers from the wedding yesterday. But that will be gone soon and I'll be back to my green smoothies. It's a great great way to get enough fruits and veggies to avoid lack-of-fiber problems :/

Feeling thankful for: friends/co-workers who are my biggest advocates. A positive well-baby appointment (she's still tall - today she measured in the 95% percentile!).

Photo: DAY 113
I can't remember the name of the business, but there's a cool new seller down at the Saturday Market who sells bread dough that you take home and bake yourself. Hot-out-of-the-oven-bread for $4? Yes please!

Nothing interesting about today....

There's a new booth at Saturday Market that sells bread dough for you to take home and bake. If there's anything better than hot from the oven bread, please tell me. 

Blurry but so cute and happy. That's her new monkey from Aunt Sarah and Uncle Daniel. 

Love. 

Wedding Day

Too tired to go into alot of details except to say it was a beautiful wedding. Setting up was ridiculous but of course it turned out perfect. Simple but very pretty. Ari was a little princess in her wedding dress. Mom, Dad, Jess and Kate came over for the weekend so it was nice to hang out with them at the reception.

Weddings are a lot of work....

....even when it's not my wedding.

We spent today grocery shopping for everything we needed for smoked mozzarella pasta salad and then making it, picking up the wedding present - the one that was worth $60 but I got for $21 because Macy's practically gives things away - getting my nose re-pierced because the stud fell out last night, decorating the chapel, picking up decorations....there's more but I'll stop.

The rehearsal dinner was amazing, thanks to Mr and Mrs Chapin with a little help from Jonathan's Oyster Bar. Caesar salad, halibut, prime rib, mashed potatoes, rice pilaf, grilled asparagus, cheesecake....super amazing. Isaac thought the salad was perfect and I thought it was over-dressed - but that's pretty typical for us :)

FRIDAY!

Fill in the Blank Friday

1. When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I do is: play with Ari and check Facebook and emails on my phone.

2. I can hardly wait for: Sarah's wedding to be over. And the craftshow next weekend - mostly because I want to make some things for Ari's room.

3. The quickest way to my heart is: sarcasm, I think.

4. A little known fact about me is that: Hm, I can't think of anything. I think I'm a pretty open book.

5. The best part about my job is: the flexibility. The high that comes when someone hands me a donation that's more than I make in a month. My super awesome boss(es). Knowing that we are actually making a difference, even though most people don't realize it. The best part about my job as a mom is how I'm the one she wants most. I love how much she needs me. And her smiles melt my heart every time...even when it's 3 in the morning and I want to be mad at her.

6. Something I just couldn't live without is: my family. But on a very superficial note, my car. My iPhone. Diet Coke. 

7. Something useful that I wish I knew how to do is: cook and sew. I'm getting better at cooking but I still get really nervous and have to follow a recipe.

Used this recipe to make lemon poppyseed muffins for tomorrow morning. YUM. I substituted Greek yogurt for the sour cream - partly because that's what I had but mostly because sour cream is unhealthy and Greek yogurt is healthy. The muffins are dense but pretty moist too....definitely putting it in my recipe binder.

DAY 110

Apparently she thinks she needs some muscle definition in her legs.

DAY 109

Ostensibly, we went to Whole Foods at Bridgeport for smoked mozzarella for the pasta salad we're making for Sarah's wedding. The $11 for cheese ended up being the least expensive part of the whole trip. Isaac spent quality time in the drink section and I browsed the baby section. I found some organic sugar free puffs for Ari and came home and threw away the Gerber ones that had sugar as the third ingredient. $70 dollars later....

DAY108

Pulled herself up!

DAY 107

Wedding prep!

DAY 103

Today by the numbers: 1 tank of gas, 2 coffees, 3 food/bathroom stops, 7 episodes of Think Out Loud, 400 miles round trip...and a stack of contributions in my pocket. Plus a gorgeous sunny day at my office-for-the-day at Bandon Dunes.

DAY 108

We finally moved Ari's crib back into her room. It was so disappointing not to be able to use it when she was born due to the single pane windows that made it impossible to keep the room warm. Well, technically it could have been warm but we figured our $300 electricity bill was already high enough. Between moving the crib back in and having her brand new toy box that Uncle Luke made, it's beginning to look like a little girl's room. Next project is to put up pictures and then make some pillows and a rug to create a little reading corner.

DAY 103

Only in Portland.

DAY 102

Good thing I didn't have anything important that needed to be done today. 3 dozen cupcakes take a long time to make. These were for Sarah's lingerie shower. I was not looking forward to it at all but it turned out to be not as awkward as I thought it would be.

I made 15 chocolate cupcakes using Mary's mayo cake recipe and 15 champagne cupcakes. That was a new recipe and it was a pain. It called for beating the egg whites and then folding them into the batter....alot of work and they didn't even seem that light and fluffy.