Me and Ms. Jones

There's always background music at our house. Nothing too exciting, not too pop-ish, or rock-ish, or commercial-ish (ooh that spell checker is blowin' up!).  I like quiet music. Smart music. Music with real voices and instruments and lyrics. And I love Norah Jones. I'd prob never crank her up in the car, but she's perfect for my at-home playlist.
I bought this little number, Featuring Norah Jones (I still buy CD's, I know... weird-O) last winter and dubbed it as my winter soundtrack. It was perfect for cold weather: wood burning, soup on the stove, slippers on the wood floor.  However, I  gave it a spin last night, and it turns out it's also pretty snazzy in the summer. Windows open, slow sunset, crickets chirping. Kinda sexy.
Just thought you should know.
Wink.

20 More Days...

Ahhh, sweet summer. Staying up late, quiet mornings, uncombed hair. Picnic lunches, bare feet, sand in places sand shouldn't be...
20 more days til school starts!
Part of me is relieved. My sweet girl loves school. She loves routine and organization. She loves school lunch. I'll be happy to send her off every day know she will be staying busy and having fun (and enjoying her tater tots and canned peaches).
And of course I'm also a little sad. We've had so much fun, but there is so much more to do! 20 days just doesn't seem like long enough to accomplish everything.
Cheers to making the most of the last days of summer, and squeezing out every last juicy drop!

Fab Foto Friday: Sweet Baby... BOY?!?

Yes, ma'am! We are having baby #2, and we just found out we've got a little man-baby. I saw this picture of my husband and I got a little misty thinking about what it might be like to have a son. Every dream I've ever had about being a mom came true when we had our baby girl, and the thought of having a boy never really entered my brain waves. But the more I think about it the more excited I become!
Guess I better get crackin' on baby boy hats...

(oops)

photo from regansbrain on Etsy

Life is good. But accidents happen, right?
They say bad things happen in three's, so our family should be in the clear for the next few days.
Luckily all of three of our incidents were minor, non-life-threatening, and kinda funny...

Mishap #1:  The delightful young Sophie dropped her bowl of chicken alphabet soup on the kitchen floor, shattering the bowl, splattering all 26 letters, a few peas and carrots, and tons of yellowy brothy liquid all over the floor. Moments like this, we call in our trusty outside dog to come in and take care of the situation.

Mishap #2: Our family was enjoying the most gorgeous evening in months, by taking a bike ride on our gravel country road. My husband, poor husband, trying to race the dog (I don't know) stood up on his pedal to gain extra speed... and his chain broke. He landed on his forearms, with the bike on top of him, and I saw the whole thing. He pushed his bike back home, chain in hand, blood dripping from his arms, and a defeated look on his face.

Mishap #3: A recent cool down in temps combined with back to school shopping is getting me jazzed for autumn. I started thinking beer cheese soup and decided to make some. There come a point in the recipe, after everything is all nice and hot, when you  have to put the soup in a blender (you know where this is going...) to puree the veggies. The recipe clearly states: "Just make sure you don’t fill it more than a third full at a time and cover it tightly so you don’t end up with a soupy mess." Well, on my final round of blending I became impatient, as I often do in the kitchen, and filled the blender too full. I turned the blender on, and the hot boiling cheese soup exploded all over my face. Owww. Rather than turning the blender off quickly, I screamed and ran, leaving the blender to continue to explode all over the counter top.

All messes were cleaned up, nobody got injured to the point of medical treatment, and we all got a few chuckles, and I'm ready for a new day.

Laundry La-La Land

You know you want one.
I know you've seen the pictures.

That beautiful laundry room, with large and lovely appliances. Storage baskets in custom cubbies. Fresh colors, natural light, crisp floral fabrics, and a smidge of vintage domestic flair.

materialgirlsblog.com
And a checkered floor doesn't hurt either.


hollymathisinteriors
I'm wondering if I would make excuses to do laundry rather than make excuses to avoid laundry.


I'm wondering if it would ever be this tidy.

 My laundry room is located in the basement of a 140 year old house. Our washing machine and dryer are mismatched. The only storage baskets are ugly plastic ones arranged on an old metal rack. It's dimly lit by a rickety fluorescent light (romantic). The floor isn't checkered. It's cracked concrete. Eww, I know.
I'm thinking I'll prob just have to keep wondering.

I. Love. Project. Runway.

Season 9. Episode 2.
Designers had to create a look using only materials from the pet store.
Best quote from the show goes to Michael Kors, expressing his disapproval of this dress:

"You've gotta have like, candy corn teeth to wear that dress."

Ca-rack me up!
It's very unusual for me to like a show like this... I'm not a fashion hound (obviously, because I thought the above dress was totally cute), I've never sewn an actual garment, and I don't care to watch reality competition shows.
I'm just always so inspired by the designers' creativity and talent, and what they are able to accomplish under the pressure of time and limited resources.
And Heidi Klum is dar-ling.

Aufidersen

Sneak Peek

My own Sweet Baby Freckleface, in a new design for Sweet Baby Dolly Fall 2011.
Not yet listed so stay tuned my friends...

Long Time No Blog

Well, missy, where did you wonder off to?
Baaah, chill. It's summer. I've been at the beach, the pool, the girlfriend's lake house, the garden, the ice cream shop, okay? I've been knitting (up a storm). Parades. BBQ's. Camping. Family movie nights cooped up and safe from the horrendous Minnesota mid-summer mosquito/heat/humidity combo of death.

Busy lady. But I'm back.
You couldn't get rid of me if you tried.