A Crazy Set

After breakfast at Gayle's, we went down to Capitola Village for a morning walk. It was perfect weather. Absolutely lovely.

We walked out the Capitola Wharf to look at the water. We got to see a huge set of waves come through. It was so fun. They were spraying up through the boards. A bunch of the boards were being pushed up & splintered. The wharf was swaying. It was a good adventure!

15

Dear Reader,
We are expecting another baby in May!
Here is a not-very-good picture of me (why do I always close my eyes when I smile?! I need to go to modeling school) from last weekend. As you can see, at week 15, I have more than a "bump"!
I've been feeling fairly well thus far, and we are very excited.

Satisfaction

Grandma & Grandpa Adams are in town this week. Grandma was here playing most of the morning. So, I got a lot things done. I washed my dishes. I cleaned the floor. I have milk-braised pork in the crock pot. I am almost finished with the 15 name place settings (3 more to go). I drank an entire bottle of Pellegrino. I baked my pies!
Thanksgiving will be at my folk's house tomorrow. Scott's folks will join us there.
Our contributions:
Pioneer Woman's Olive Cheese Bread
Pear & Rosemary Martinis
Five Spice Fizz - a mocktail from Imbibe using a five-spice simple syrup, kumquats, dry soda...
Sauteed Brussels Sprouts w/ Pistachios & Lemon
Parker House Rolls
Deep Dish Apple Caramel Pie
Berry Pie

This is just a basic one...
Berries
little less than 1 cup of sugar
1-2 Tablespoons Flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
Dot 1 Tablespoon of butter over filling

My dough recipe is easy
2 2/3 cups flour
rub in 1 cup cold butter
mix in 1/4 - 1/3 cup ice cold water
chill before rolling out

Bake this pie @ 450 for 10 minutes. Reduce oven to 350 & bake about 30 minutes longer.

The Dreaded Ones

I have finished a number of dreaded errands recently. It feels so nice. Last week, I spent over 1/2 hour at the DMV, finally getting my address updated on my license. This week, I got my rear down to the County Recorder's office & bought birth certificates for my children. (I know... took me long enough...) Today I went to the Social Security office & finally got Peyton's number. Now that those things are done, it feels good. Like when I clean my bathrooms. The sense of accomplishment to be had, for completing a dreaded task, makes it all worth while. I wonder why they are so dreaded, then?

Seeing Fishies

We went to the aquarium with the cousins today! I didn't get very many pictures. But, you can see more photos at my sister's blog.

We all had a good time!

Right Now

I am going to make this Shepherd's Pie for dinner. I don't think about Shepherd's Pie very often. But, when it comes to mind, I recall how yummy, and very satisfying it is. It came to mind recently. So, I am going to make it.

My kids are napping. I should be using this time to tackle my filthy kitchen - before I make it filthy again in a few hours. But, I have decided to do something else.

I am very tired. If I were wise, I would take a nap. But, I am not going to. Not right now.


I am going to work on making these little wheat bundle place settings. I plan on having a good time.

Don't Give Up

Just when I was feeling done with trying to win free stuff on blogs... I won!

Gillian got a reversible dress from OnTheFlipside from a contest on SIMPLE reviews!

So Happy Together

I love how the kids can actually play together now. Peyton has grown up so much this past month. It blows my mind. I love seeing them play & have fun.

Gillian is talking a lot now, too. One of my favorite things she says - when we walk outside, if it is sunny and warm, the first things she declares is, "Nice Day!" I love it! I need to try to link a video of them here, so you all can see how big they are!

Marvelous Madeline

I took the kids & drove "over the hill" this morning. I hadn't done that in many months. I had something (containers) that I needed to return to The Container Store.

We did a lot of stocking stuffer shopping.

We stopped in at the Cocola Bakery to get an iced coffee. I got the kids a Madeline cake to share. IT WAS INCREDIBLE. I thought I liked the brand that is sold at Starbucks. These fresh baked ones were 100 times better. It was so moist & soft. It had a bright, but delicate orange flavor.

Oh. How I love a real, good bakery. When I lived in Sunnyvale, I used to go to a wonderful place called The Los Altos Bakery. (It was in Los Altos.) I loved that bakery. The brioche. Ah!!!!!!!! Then it changed ownership & wasn't any good anymore. I hate looking at baked goods & being tempted by their beauty to buy - and then they are crappy. That is usually the way I feel at a bakery or coffee shop. I wish I had saved my money & just baked something at home. But, this Cocola was the real deal. I, for sure, could not have done better.

I Believe it!

We don't have TV channels at our house. But, while we are in Macdoel, there is Dish Network. So, we were watching HGTV, DIY & Food Network. We learned some good things & got good inspiration. I was also reminded what a sucker I am for marketing. I have a hard time not believing everything they tell me in commercials. We are very much convinced of our need for some Shamwows. How have we gone on living so long without them? I am pretty sure I need the Pedegg, too.

But, I know that I shouldn't believe all I hear... My Oxi Clean does NOT work the way that loud mouth commercial guys says it will. And, my hair does not shine the way it is supposed to, when I shampoo with Pantene... I really shouldn't trust they are telling me the full truth on the commercials. But, I struggle. It is good I don't have TV.


Here is a good thing I learned from TV, on the Martha show.
I made this paper wig to wear for Halloween. Here Gillian is glad to model it.

Back in the Game

Uh. We were back from Macdoel the end of last week. NICE to be home. Then we all got the stomach flu. Not nice. Scott & I were sick at the exact same time. Blah! Gillian was willing to take care of Peyton for us, so we could sleep. She told me to go nigh-night & tried to pick up Peyton. But, I think he weighs almost as much as she does! So, that didn't work out too well...
Anyway. We are back to normal life now.