Homely Animal

Half the Battle

2012-01-30T19:54:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow starts the most dreaded and difficult phase of chemo of our girl. Some people have asked me whey she still has chemo if the cancer cells are gone and here is why.

Leukemia is the existence of cancerous cells in the blood. How do they get there? The bone marrow makes them. The process of creating the cancerous cells instead of making normal healthy white blood cells is a problem. When the tests came back that the cancerous cells were gone that was HUGE for us since leukemic cells crowd out good cells and cause the major symptoms of the disease AND her cells were chemo resistant. Killing all of the cancer cells matters and matters A LOT, but it doesn't signify the end of the battle.

Now that those cells are gone we turn to the blood cell making process. Doctors can't really restart that process, or correct the complicated genes that control what kind of blood cells are made. If chemo would've stopped after her negative test results, it would've only been a matter of time before the bone marrow would've just made more cancerous cells.

The process she has now is aimed at activating any possible dormant leukemic cells, releasing them and killing them in their infancy. This is the reason that her chemo will go on until winter of 2013. Even then there is a real chance that the process won't have straightened itself out. She will have a 25-30% chance of relapse. The longer she goes without a relapse, the smaller her chances of a relapse become.

So tomorrow, if her blood cell counts are high enough, she will start. While before we had some serious hair thinning, we have been told that this phase leaves everybody bald. Some retain their fuzz and some are shiny, but all are bald. When this phase is over in 58 days, and the hair grows back, this time it will have a chance to really grow.

The final countdown... for now at least.

2012-01-23T11:05:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow is our fourth and final inpatient high dose methotrexate stay at CHOP. I am so grateful for the help that we have received during these in-patient stays. I don't know how all of them would be possible without our families.

On our hospital check in day it goes something like this. 9am we drive to to our clinic about 15 minutes west of where we live. They weigh, measure height, do a BP and temp and then access Biz's port. They take a blood sample and send it to the lab for processing. It takes between 20-40 minutes to get the results. If her counts are high enough for chemo, they call down to the hospital, confirm a room, and put her into the system. We get a big white envelope with our room number on it and we load up and drive about 30 minutes east, passing our home, and going down into the city to the hospital. We have to pack the night before, and get the week ready for the other kids and Daddy.

Does anybody remember when this used to be a crafting/homemaking blog? Well I did make the baby's quilt since I have a free minute a couple of weeks ago... oh did I say 'make' a quilt? I mean finish a quilt vision with fabric purchased 2 years ago. Here are the pics. I have begun my thesis so I'm so crazy busy these days. I'll be glad to be finished with my master's so I can get more breaks for the family. I have a lot of organizing to do before we move in June. I also had a layer cake of this same fabric which I plan on using for a larger slightly less simple version of this same quilt for my other son.

The Look

2012-01-11T08:59:00.000-08:00

I'm here sitting at CHOP for our third in-patient stay for high does chemo. I found out yesterday that they will be adding another 58 day phase of multiple chemo treatments to the roadmap before we ease into maintenance (once a month/hair grows back/"easy" chemo). Instead of starting the easy stuff on March 28 we will now still be dealing with more hard parts of this until the end of May, assuming she never gets fevers, is hospitalized, or doesn't make hercounts for scheduled treatments.

This whole floor/wing of CHOP is for patients with oncology related needs. There is chemo here, bone marrow transplants, kids with fevers, children with high chances, and children saying goodbye.

I've noticed this time that the parents here all have almost the same look on their faces. These are the faces of people going through something but trying to be strong. You can almost tell their level of sickness acceptance by their face. Parents who are new to this floor are as obvious as the veterans.

If you look across into the room windows, you can see people talking to their kids, reading books, smiling and seemingly energetic. The same parents walking alone in the halls aren't those things. The Ronald McDonald room feels heavy, moms and dads at the linen closet aren't smiling. This is when you can see they are broken.

Throughout this ordeal I've been asking every nurse the same two questions. Is somebody else in your family in medicine? If the answer is 'no' then the next question is almost always 'yes'. Did/does somebody in your family have a medical condition when you were growing up? My nurse last time had a brother with hemophilia, our nurse this time 'had' a family member with cancer.

I made a couple of little hospital outfits to add to the collection. With the short hair and the impending second round of baldness it seemed like a good time. I need people to know that she's a girl.

Nickels

2011-12-28T19:31:00.000-08:00

Today is day 2 of her second in-patient stay for high-dose chemo. Day one has us confined to her hospital room so she doesn't endanger any other kids and day two is when the drugs are still being given (they run for 24 hours straight) so it's hard to leave the room with that GIANT pole and all of it's hanging bags, pumps, and lines. Tomorrow is Day three which should be easier. The rest is a waiting game to see when enough of the drugs have left her system to be safe to go home. If it is anything like last time she'll be ready on Friday morning...fingers crossed.

Today I was thinking that we were half way there, which got me singing Bon Jovi which has now been stuck in my head all day. These little steps and phases seem to pass quickly enough if you only concentrate on each procedure. Almost 2 in-patient stays done, 2 more to go. Next is a 58 day phase which is also broken up into two parts. I used to count down until we'd be done the residency, the pregnancy, days until the chicks hatch, days until Christmas, and now I count down to chemo.

Lizzie gets $0.05 cents for every BM and every time she finishes her sippy cup. She has a small pink bank beside her bed which she LOVES to plunk coins in to. For about $3.50/month I can buy her bowel health and hydration. Deal.

First of Four

2011-12-10T21:16:00.000-08:00

We are on the second day of our first of four hospital stays. Each stay is 3-5 days long and they happen every 2 weeks. Long days but fun stuff to do with the child life people.

I wish the Ronald McDonald room had regular meals for family members instead of a basket of condiments, 200 plastic spoons and two pots of coffee.

We're back on the scary drug roller coaster. Checking kidney function, measure chemo levels in urine, and multiple fluids all mixing up and going into her little body.

Counting down until we can go home and see the other kids and Daddy again. Hopefully that day will be Monday.

Cut ties

2011-12-10T10:22:00.000-08:00

When my second son was 3 years old and he would get upset, he'd get a very large bottom lip and say, "I'm never going to smile again" and "I'll never be happy again, EVER!". Over the years we've laughed at those days and so has he. The irony is that during the past 3 1/2 months I've had moments when I feel those same things. People at the store will routinely ask, "how are you doing today?" and I've felt like yelling, "how do you think I feel?? my little girl has cancer", but I don't.

On Thursday night we got the call that Lizzie's most recent bone marrow biopsy did not show any leukemia cells, o.oo% This was a big day for us since up until now we've only ever been given bad news we were braced for the worst. I finally feel like I can smile again. We feel a huge weight lifted off of our shoulders since the opposite scenario would've had us talking bone marrow transplant right now. Hopefully I can end my relationship with Viacord forever and the baby's cord blood will never be necessary for anything.

I'm with her now in the hospital where she receiving inpatient chemo until Monday. They have told us in the past that she'll be shiny bald and it really hasn't happened yet but it is coming in about 2 months. Until then I will let her hair grow.

Lizzie will continue on the treatment plan of chemotherapy until Nov 2013 and she still has some rough days ahead and more scheduled hospitalization, but the cancer cells are gone. Hopefully for good.

Pants on fire

2011-11-30T06:38:00.000-08:00

This is not the MRD news that I said would be in the next post.

Yesterday morning at 4am Biz woke up with a fever which got high enough to be of concern by 8am. We called the clinic and at 9 we took her into her scheduled appointment. After running some blood work they called a transport to take her to the main hospital to be admitted.

She rode in an ambulance (she was actually pretty excited about that part) and is now in her own room in Philly. My sister is on a plane on her way to come and help our family.

They say that we are very lucky to have her first fever after over three months of treatment, two of which were very heavy. A normal ANC is 1500+ and anything under 500 is compromising. Yesterday morning her ANC was 16. No wonder she had a fever.

Mess

2011-11-27T16:50:00.001-08:00

I am a mess.

This week Biz gets a bone marrow biopsy done which will tell us if her chemo-resistant cancer cells are still there. All of the feelings of loss of control and thoughts of losing her are back. The next post I write will be the results of that test.

I hate the movie "Life is Beautiful" and my husband thinks it's soooo good. He says the movie has a great message and the father is great and I just feel like grabbing him by both shoulders, shaking him and saying, "it's about the holocaust! You know, the Ho-lo-caust, gen-o-cide, 8 million dead?". I'm mostly thinking that no matter how 'fun' you make a concentration camp, it's still a concentration camp. This can probably sum up our feelings about leukemia. I think there are some things I need to learn.

When one person has cancer the whole family has cancer. I'm trying to remember through it all, that the other kids are going through this too. They are also dealing with things and processing. I waited until I was alone with the boys and asked them if they had any questions about Lizzie and her leukemia. The very first question was, "Can you catch leukemia?"

In with the old, in with the new

2011-11-21T19:15:00.001-08:00

Previous Diaper Bag Contents

Diapers
Wipes
Pacifier
Extra Outfit sz 3-6 mos
Back up bottle/formula
Hand Sanitizer

Current Diaper Bag Contents

All of the old diaper bag contents
Box of band-aids
surgical gloves
face masks
surgical tape
EMLA cream
Tegaderm patches
Epi-Junior
DVDs
Extra Outfit size 5T
Lrg size Zip-loc bag

Crazy how much things can change.

Plasma, Dog Plasma

2011-11-20T08:40:00.000-08:00

Okay so it's not plasma, but there are still a lot of transfusions going on right now. This past week alone Biz had to to get blood once and platelets twice. It's always a little bit freaky for me to sign the release for my girl to get blood products. I've been assured on a number of occasions that it is so much safer than it used to be...but still.

This week she also got our most dreaded chemo drug that we experience in her protocol. She has had it twice before but you never know if there will be a reaction. Before I left the NP gave me the review of what to watch for when we got home. Tightening throat, rashes, and not breathing. I also was told to review the epi-pen instructions and practice a few times. I hate this.

Even though I broke up with stats last month, he is trying to get back together. I think he liked how much control he had over my feelings (like all bad boyfriends do). The thing that they don't tell you when you get your diagnosis is that a large percentage of children who don't win this battle, actually die from the treatments. These drugs are scary, these treatments are scary, this whole experience is filled with risk, disappointment, triumph, and despair. It is the longest stretch of feeling consistent fear that I have had in my whole life.

This cartoon was my first exposure to transfusions. I hope when Lizzie is done her treatment, that her experience will be our last.

Crazy Mixed Up Pup

The Coal Mine

2011-11-07T19:01:00.000-08:00

We've transferred to CHOP and the atmosphere is different. I feel like I've gone from a group of people with Biz's best interest in mind to a drug administering program. The nurses are good and the social worker is super helpful, but I don't feel it from the doctor level. They don't check her counts at the end of the week to make sure she'll be okay through the weekend and I've already had to request that one of her chemos be given through the port instead of sub-cue injections at home. It's what the treatment plan says and I feel like I just can't stray from that plan.

Today I took Biz to the bird farm. Since it is largely outdoors and has a lot more than birds (mini horses, emu, goats, a pig etc), it is a fun place for her to run and feed the animals. We've been twice this week. Today the bird guy looked at her and looked at me and said, "does he have something?". With all of the earthy colors that I dress my girls in, without hair, Lizzie's gender is now not easily distinguished. He was nice but I think it might be time for more pink.

Since the trigger of the leukemia is not known, I've spent a lot of time evaluating my environment. I honestly don't know any mother as hyper-vigilant as I am in regards to feeding their children non-GMO and organic foods. With all of the junk I see other children eating I can't for a second believe that diet had anything to do with this diagnosis. That leaves environment.

I have a cage in my home with 7 canaries. 3 boys and 4 girls. The boys are beautiful singers and bring such a beautiful sound to the apartment and the girls are pretty and necessary for future generations. They also serve another purpose which is air quality control. Although I never want to lose a canary, what I want less is to have some sort of undetected air problem in our home. These birds have a job to do.

All of the schedules around me have continued as they were. Daddy still goes to work, has business dinners, and trips, and the kids are in school every day with friends and teachers, scouts and basketball. Every schedule, plan and routine that I have developed as a parent and lived over the last 7 years is gone. My social exposure is with the nurses at the clinic and the bird guy. I guess this is part of 'the new normal' that they tell you about.

Special Day

2011-11-03T19:31:00.001-07:00

A lady at church (Tonya), whose 4 year old daughter finished chemo the year before, asked me how we were doing and how Lizzie was adjusting to her new routine. I told her that the biggest thing that Lizzie missed was shopping with Mommy.

Usually I get the boys off to school and then take the younger kids and we get our groceries, run errands, go to target and then head home for lunch, now we can't do that. Even though we don't buy many toys, we always swing through the toy department to have a look and press buttons and try things out. Lizzie misses that.

Tonya arranged a special day for us by asking the local toy store if they would open just for her. At 9am on Monday morning the staff at O.P. Taylor in Asheville, NC opened there doors for just one family. They had sterilized all of the toys and were able to disinfect everything except costumes and stuffed toys. Tonya also took a collection from the people at church and got each child a gift card. For one glorious hour, Lizzie and the kids got to play, try-out, and test all of the fun toys. The staff was truly wonderful and I know it is a day they will never forget. What a great, and insightful, treat for us!

*Slightly less cool was that as we were running out the door to arrive at the store on time, we got on shoes, hoodies, and as I lifted the baby into his seat, I felt that he had a diaper blow out. As I rushed to change it with all of the kids standing around ready to go, Leo smelled the diaper and threw up on the floor....awesome. We still arrived 3 minutes early but just barely :)

Visitors

2011-10-19T20:00:00.001-07:00

We had a visit from our stake president and the visiting general authority last Saturday which gave us a little bit of peace/hope. It didn't take him long to love little Lizzie. He is taking her name to the SLC temple tomorrow, where on the 3rd thursday of every month, the first presidency, the quorum, and the GAs have their fast and prayer meeting. He is putting her name on their prayer roll. He assured us that miraculous things happen to the people whose names are on that roll and that we'll feel the prayers in her behalf on that day. That day is tomorrow.

New Digs

2011-10-14T18:44:00.000-07:00

We're preparing to leaving our apartment in NC in a short time. Thank you so much for everybody who sent packages, letters, cards, and well wishes to our girl. Her treatment plan has only just begun. To save time and energy we'll be posting updates on Biz on facebook and only posting on this blog occasionally when time permits.

-B

Devil on One Shoulder

2011-10-02T20:16:00.000-07:00

There are days when you think, "she doesn't even seem sick" and then other days you can't even think of the word "cancer" without tearing up. If you listen to the thoughts that say, "she's gonna beat this", then you have to hear the thoughts that say, "she's gone". The answer to this is to stop listening. The past 6 weeks have been a real test of thought management. I now refuse to let my mind wander. Period.

Since the diagnoses I have been flooded with phone calls, emails, texts, and FB friend requests. this blog is my response to that. I can't answer everything or add even the smallest jobs to my current 'to-do' list. I just can't tell the 'story' one more time. I have been touched by the thoughtfulness and generosity of those around us and can't thank those people enough who went out of their way to help us and Lizzie in ways that really matter.

So far she is tolerating chemo well. She is a little trooper and it's sad how normal it all seems to be for them after such a short time. I watcher her maneuver her IV line today with careless ease and swallowing pills whole like it was nothing.

On Monday we had a family day. We went to a farm with a harvest-y thing going on and saw the animals, picked a pumpkin, did the maze and played in the giant pile of hay. It was a beautiful day on a farm in the hills surrounded by my husband and children. I think I will look back on that day as one of the happiest of my life.

Famous

2011-09-29T20:06:00.000-07:00

Lizzie's tests came back after the first 28 days of treatment and there are still cancer cells in her blood. 88/10,000 which as recent as a year ago wouldn't have been detected and would've had parents celebrating only to relapse later in treatment, but now they are visible through a new test and she has them. This takes her from a very low risk group to the VHR (Very high risk) group and reduces her chances.....sigh. The cells that are left weren't killed by the chemo and are therefor stronger and more resilient. Similar to an antibiotic immunity, now she must be given stronger and more frequent chemos (she'll get 4 does... yes FOUR doses of chemo this Tues).

I've decided to stop looking at statistics for her prognosis. She is not a number. She is a unique little girl with her own body and her own chances and she is a fighter. I am breaking up with statistics for good... it's not you it's me.

We got this news on Tuesday and then found out that earlier that same day, the 2 year old son of our dear college friends was crushed and killed by a dresser drawer. The family baby with his blonde curls and his sparkling eyes. Their baby boy. He is gone and a family is in shock. My heart breaks for them and as I find quiet moments to cry for them and me, I look over and my baby girl is still alive sitting next to me on the couch. I am grateful for this time with her. Whether I will have her with me for 2 years or 50, I still have her now. I'm sure our friends would give anything to have their baby back for two years.

We went to the playground yesterday and Lizzie didn't want to wear a hat. I explained to her that some people aren't used to seeing a little girl who was bald and that she (and my other kids) might notice people looking at her for a long time. She turned and said, "mom, that just means I'm famous". Silly me.

I'm trying to prepare her for the next 28 days which will be brutal. 4 days of chemo each week for the first 2 weeks. This is where we arrive at the shiny bald head and not the fuzzy one. This is where the nausea, dizziness, no immune system, and feeling really sick will be at their worse. This phase is important. We really need all of the cancer cells to be gone after this or else we will be looking at a bone marrow transplant which is not great at all.

It is hard to imagine the future.... period. If this ends well then I think we would be able to look back with a perspective otherwise impossible and say 'we made it' and are stronger and better despite the terror. If the ends badly I don't know how we could ever recover.

A Bench

2011-09-15T05:47:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was Lizzie's last chemo treatment during this induction therapy phase. For the treatment of her cancer there are 3 phases that make up the 2 years and 2 months of planned treatment. The induction phase is the first 4 weeks.

Induction therapy: This is the first phase of treatment. Its purpose is to kill the leukemia cells in theblood and bone marrow. This puts the leukemia into remission. This is also called the remission induction phase.
Consolidation /intensification therapy: This is the second phase of therapy. It begins once the leukemia is in remission. The purpose of consolidation/intensification therapy is to kill any remaining leukemia cells that may not be active but could begin to regrow and cause a relapse.
Maintenance therapy: This is the third phase of treatment. Its purpose is to kill any remaining leukemia cells that may regrow and cause a relapse. Often the cancer treatments are given in lowerdoses than those used for induction and consolidation/intensification therapy. This is also called the continuation therapy phase.

One her first day of treatment, when she got her port plac

ed, her LP (lumbar puncture/spinal tap), and her bone marrow biopsy, they gathered all of the information from those tests. On the 28th day of treatment (this Tuesday) she gets those same

three tests done and the compared results will give us her statistical chances of survival. That will be a big day for us. As of right now she falls into the 'moderate' risk category.

We've been trying to stay upbeat and positive since it matters. We realized that after completing phase three of treatment Lizzie should qualify for a wish from the make-a-wish foundation. The other kids are very interested in this concept. After establishing that you can't wish for more wishes, wish for a 'million dollars', or wish to get better, the 'wish coaching' has begun. Despite attempts at Disney visits, ponies, and international excursions, Lizzie is set on the fact that her one big wish is to get her own bench. We had two child sized park benches at our hold house in Philly (btw $24.99 ea) and I gave them away when we moved. Apparently they left quite an impression. Needless to say, her wish is driving the other kids crazy.

We go back to Philadelphia in about 6 weeks and I've heard wonderful things about the children's hospital there (CHOP). Since our house sold I still need to find a place for us to live out the last 8 months of the residency so that is at the top of my to-do list. I remain on fever-avoidance patrol with Biz (Lizzie), and am hoping to make it through another week without incident.

A week in review (Day 24)

2011-09-11T09:26:00.000-07:00

It has been 24 days since diagnosis. It's funny how much your life, experiences, and goals can change in a month....or a week...or a day.

We took her in to have her head shaved since it was falling out. As she shaved, the lady at the salon cried. Daddy cried. I cried but was able to hold it together for the most part. Nothing puts a damper on an experience like a, "mommy/daddy, why are you crying?" moment. As she was sitting in the chair and the shaving was coming to an end, my oldest son who had been watching the whole time turned to me and said, "is that Lizzie?".

Her little body is puffing up from the steroids. Her cheeks and torso are noticeably larger. She doesn't seem to mind her bald head. I bought her a pink wig to wear and when she saw herself in the mirror and I asked her what she thought she answered, "um...better than brown".

We are starting to pull ourselves together and are finding quiet moments to feel what we need to feel so we can move on and be productive for her and the other kids.

We took the kids to the county fair yesterday morning. There were stares, questions, and comments. People wanted to know what was wrong with Lizzie and how old the baby was.

We are glad to have made it through another week... that's 3 down and only 113 to go.

Gone.

2011-09-07T16:16:00.000-07:00

It's time.

2011-09-06T17:23:00.000-07:00

This morning Lizzie had her 4th chemo treatment. The doctor told me that this is the week that the hair will start falling out. We got the kids dressed today and took them outside to take pictures of them together before the baldness arrives. I also took some individual pics of Lizzie just to have of her with her hair but I waited a little bit too long. Her cheeks are already puffy from the steroids and her hairline shows thinning. As I was braiding her hair I had to make a little pile of hair beside me on the floor.

I don't know if it's the actual hair loss that I dread or if it's that this will all become real once the hair goes. Right now she looks pretty normal except for her cheeks. The baldness will make it all official. Will there be stares? If there are, will she notice? Will the other kids be okay seeing their baby sister bald? Should we let it fall out itself or shave it for her before the fact? I don't know these answers.

Today starts the next week of the fever avoidance.

The challenge: keeping a child with no immune system from getting a fever.

The reward: she stays at home with us instead of having to go back to the hospital.

Jiggity Jig

2011-08-31T19:06:00.000-07:00

Lizzie came home today. I can take her for her bi-weekly visits and as long as she doesn't get a fever over 100.4 she won't have to go back to the hospital. What I kind of don't understand is how I keep her from getting a fever when all of her white blood cells get wiped out by chemo every Tuesday.

She is settling into her old routine and back in her element. She is going to need a refresher course in sharing and taking turns picking what shows to watch.

We have a few days left before that hair starts falling out. We are going to take a family picture and some individual pictures of her in the next day or two. They said that siblings and parents usually have a harder time with the hair loss than the little patient herself. I'm trying to prepare the siblings for the baldness.

We are just so glad to have her back home.

I missed her more than I can say.

Still not home.

2011-08-28T12:42:00.000-07:00

Stick on earrings and a new hospital outfit.

Little things.

2011-08-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

Today will be the first day that I don't get to see Lizzie since she was diagnosed on Friday. There are a lot of freaky germs in the peds wing and I can't take the baby there. I'm also trying my hardest to recover from this c-section since Daddy has to go back to work on Monday.

She had her second round of chemo today... already. She got her first little pair of custom hospital clothes from Aunt Lexi today in the mail. Auntie Lor washed them and took them to her this afternoon with a small pair of purple butterfly slippers and some stick on earrings from Auntie Monica. These little things matter.

Yesterday one of her string-cheeses went missing.

Another music person came around to her room today and gave her a harmonica. She and Daddy called so she could play it for me over the phone. She was so excited to have it. These little things matter.

They identified her subtype of A.L.L. I don't know what it is since I wasn't there, but I was told it was the one with the best chances and that since her chemo on Tuesday was shown to be effective through a follow up blood test, that her chances of survival are going up.

I'm a person that uses stats to alleviate anxiety. I like to know my odds. My children have a higher chance of being hurt from an improperly installed car-seat than they have of being abducted, so I can just install their seats right and know they are less likely to be hurt. I don't speed when I drive and haven't for years since while still needing to drive, it makes us that much safer.

When they say that the chances of my child getting cancer are 1 in 50,000 it hits me wrong since those stats should've been on my side. It should be a statistic that brings me peace but it isn't. It brings peace to 49,999 other mothers whose children will never get sick. As they tell me her chances of getting better I feel like saying, "Oh wait, you don't understand, I've just been betrayed by stats so I can't trust them any more".

On the flip side, she is a shining star in the peds wings. She has her tired moments and wants to come home, but she also is surprising happy and childlike for a little person going through what she is going through. I hope and pray that she can hold on to that and feel joy every day. These little things matter.

Day 5

2011-08-23T20:51:00.000-07:00

That lady with the guitar hasn't come back around so things are looking up.

Today was the first round of chemo. They gave her meds and anti-nausea drugs before and she seemed to do okay. I was able to have her come upstairs in a little wagon and visit me and the baby. We sat on my hospital bed and watched her favorite spongebob on youtube (The episode when he rips his pants).

I hate signing page after page of consent forms. Since I can't remember what I had for breakfast or what baby names we liked last week, I feel like it's been hard to wrap my mind around all of the procedures that will face this little girl in the days and weeks to come. Page after page. I take some comfort in knowing that this is the most common type of leukemia with the most children patients and the most treatment experience.

We went to Whole Foods last weekend and bought her all organic snacks and foods for her to have while she is staying in the hospital. We wanted to make sure she'd have her favorite healthy stuff to eat and stay as strong as possible during it all. I marked them all with our room number and put them in a designated spot in the fridge. This morning somebody had taken one of our marked drinkable yogurts, which is one less that she'll have to drink when she isn't feeling well.

We're getting closer to a baby name. We still have some time to find a fit.

The Storm

2011-08-22T19:50:00.001-07:00

We made it through the day.

Both surgeries went extremely well and we feel blessed. My anesthesia was successful and not too heavy so I was able to sit up and avoid bad nausea. Lizzie got her port, her LP, and her bone marrow biopsy done. Our best news of the day is that there are no blasts in her spinal fluid which means it never spread there and she wasn't need radiation (Oh yeah and that we had a healthy 7 lb, 20" bouncing baby boy).

I don't really know how to feel happy and excited at the same time as feeling sad and terrified. I have to completely turn one off to feel the other. We haven't named the baby yet since we're not together. Somebody always needs to be in peds with Lizzie and I'm stuck in L & D. Hopefully tomorrow hen Auntie drops the kids off and comes for a shift, we'll be able to buckle down and pick something wonderful that fits him perfectly.

The baby is very sweet and just when I think he looks like one of the other kids, I look at him 20 minutes later and he looks like somebody else. He is definitely a keeper and already adored by the family.

Getting fired up and thinking, "we're going to beat this thing" is a nice thought but isn't within my abilities alone. I can lose 20 lb., do a masters, or compete in a triathlon, but now all I can do is what the doctors say, try to learn as much as I can, and rely on faith and attitude. I hope those things are enough.

The volunteer music lady came around yesterday to play music for the kids and hand out percussion instruments. The first song was "you are my sunshine" which I now will hate forever. The words are so wrong for the cancer hallway in the peds unit.

The second verse is especially a deal breaker.

The "Calm"

2011-08-22T03:17:00.000-07:00

I'm not excited about tomorrow. I have this little innocent new baby boy coming into the world sometime around 9:15 and I feel nothing. Well not true, I feel something, frustrated that I'll be isolated for 3 days. The day Lizzie gets her first chemo, and her spinal tap and her bone marrow extracted. The day that she'll wake up hurting with a port on her chest and only Daddy will be there. As a SAHM I'm there everyday and I know all of the 'methods' that help my kids get through things they don't want to. Until now it's been things like trying that bite they don't like, or holding still while I rip off a bandaid, and they trust my promises that it will be over quickly or before they know it because I know and I've been through it myself.

Tonight my sister asked me what our short list was for baby names and I couldn't remember.

When people always say, "one day at a time", I'm always thinking its sooo trite and overused and now I get it. You can't think ahead. It's counterproductive. If you think ahead you have to weigh all possible outcomes and it becomes too much. If you say, "lets do everything we can today and be what we need to be right now", and then you do that thing then you don't have to weigh any options or imagine any outcomes and you can be productive.

Today she figured out how to unscrew the line from her IV. I, on the other hand, could not figure out how to screw it back on. When the life nurse asked her what her favorite colors were she said, "red is my favorite, then pink, purple, and lightning".

There is a doll in the peds wing named Layla that has a port. They brought her in tonight and she'll be back tomorrow. I hope she will help since I can't.

Day 2

2011-08-20T13:40:00.000-07:00

I can say that it is pretty much my worst nightmare. She had blood drawn on the 23rd of June and her platelets were on the low end of the normal range but not abnormal. Yesterday they told me that this isn't the kind of thing that grows in your body for years but that she most likely has only really had it for the last 2-3 months. They don't know why the bone marrow stops producing healthy white cells, that is why there is so much research going on.

We call her "Fluffy" (Try not to think of Hagrid's dog). Her hair stands up in the mornings and is so cute and fluffy before I brush it out and spray it down and do it for the day. This morning when her dad washed her hair, he cried. When I got here for my shift and brushed her hair (since he didn't) I cried. In the past I have had moments of frustration having to do two rounds of princess hair every morning and now in 2-3 weeks my princess will be bald.

There is a mattress on the floor in her hospital room for me tonight with a rock hard pillow. A week ago I might have been put out by this kind of thing being 39 weeks pregnant, but it's funny how so many of the things that mattered to me a week ago mean nothing now.

Today she discovered the controls on her hospital bed, she ate pizza for lunch and gets to control the TV. We painted, read books, went to the playroom and watched half of Madeline, all things that I usually don't have time to do with her. I am terrified that I'm going to lose this girl. I'm hearing so many success stories that I'm worried that it might be time for a failure. I just need her to live. That is all.

The Day Everything Changed.

2011-08-19T18:38:00.000-07:00

I'm doing my MBA. Did I ever tell you that? I'm finishing my 8th class and have 4 more until I'm officially done and have my masters. I'm having my fifth baby on Monday morning at 9:15. Did I ever mention I was pregnant again with my fifth? It's a boy. Today my 3 year old daughter was diagnosed with cancer. My baby girl who is the family comedian and the family darling has cancer. This morning I woke up to a normal day and tonight I'm going to sleep while she is in the pediatric unit with her father, her rain cat (blanket) and a PICC line in her little 3 year old body.

My heart is breaking. They say that the chances of a child getting this cancer is 1 in 50,000. Driving home I wondered if I should stop at a gas station and buy a Mega Millions ticket, but I don't care about money today. Did I mention that my mother has never met my daughters?

My c-section is at 9:15, her operation for a port and her first round of chemo are at about 11:00 that same day. At least my husband will be able to be there for both. When she wakes up they said she can come and see me and her new baby brother. They also said she has 2 or 3 weeks before she starts losing her hair.

2 weeks ago she had absolutely no symptoms and today she has cancer.

It's official...I am a mom

2010-11-16T18:59:00.000-08:00

Okay, so it was official about 7 years ago but I have recently surrendered to motherhood. There were a few signs along the way that let me know I had arrived. Here is my personal list. (If anybody reads this please feel free to add your own insights as comments)

You know your a mother when...

You've taken a phone message with a jumbo crayon on a napkin
Your secret dream is of a government program that awards $0.05 for every time you have to touch poo. Can you say millions?
You lie down for your doctor's exam and before they begin they say, "you have a sticker on your sock, would you like me to remove it for you?"
You find non-edible items with small human bite marks in them e.g. a bar of soap, a sponge, barbie's feet, play dough, erasers, etc.... the list goes on and on.
Tidying your front hallway require the pairing and stacking of 24 pairs of shoes.
As you're walking out of the school after 'drop-offs' you stumble and look down only to discover that you are wearing two different shoes.... not kidding this really happened. One was a croc and the other was a brown clog.... how???
You take out your pony and realize your hair is 6 inches longer than the last time you noticed.
You long for kid's week on Jeopardy and cross your finger for the Nickelodeon category.... it's chosen and you whisper, "come to mama", and then sweep the whole column.
Whether or not you feel you can jump on a trampoline today.... Depends ;)
When you go through a busy day, run errands, chat with peers, and you get home to realize that you have 6 ranbow flower barretts left in your hair.... all in front.
You talk opening about your child birthing experiences with strangers.
You washed down your last pill by drinking from a pink Disney Princess plastic teacup.

This is the tip of my iceberg.

I'm sure I'll have more to add to this list tomorrow.

The end of a season

2010-10-23T17:37:00.001-07:00

Well it's officially over. The ground is covered with leaves and school is in full swing. This was a difficult summer, but it was also full of many blessings.

It's getting colder here which will bring me inside for more projects other than gardening and building which will be a nice break. Happy Fall!

Even compost can be beautiful.

2010-09-19T17:33:00.000-07:00

Pancakes again. Thanks girls :o)

Time for a change

2010-09-14T15:17:00.000-07:00

I'm shifting gears with this blog and I'll be making a few changes. Please bear with me :o)
More posts coming soon!
-HA

You've got Quail... (patterned baldness ;)

2009-09-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, you guessed it. Just when you thought our summer couldn't get any more fun, it did. My friend Jeanie lent me an incubator and gave us some quail eggs to hatch. (Such an enabler!) It is so fun and they are just adorable! Here's the blow by blow :o) We got 13 quail eggs total. 6 developed, 1 rotted, and the other 6 didn't develope at all....so

13 Corturnix Quail eggs. Each given a number to keep track of progress. Inucbate 14 days.

On day 14 they all go into the hatcher! Pip, Zip, Pop!

Could you die? How cute is this?

There are 3 babies under the heat lamp and 2 eggs that haven't hatched....yet? This is very fun and exciting. Stay tuned for more hatching posts.... Jeanie also gave us some chicken eggs! :o)-

Such a thrill

2009-08-22T08:39:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up to a surprise from Buttercup (btw she has the sweetest smile). We went to a hobby farm that was selling pullets that had just started to lay and we did not plan on buying a blue/green egg layer. It sort of just happened. When we got home she laid an egg that night, but I suspected that it was already 'en route' when we got her (the tip off being that she was swatting by the nesting box at the farm!)

Well today we got Buttercup's 2nd egg. The color is so beautiful and darker than I thought it would be. There is no mistaking that this egg is green (with a touch of blue). Our next pullet is due to start laying in about 1 month. We can't wait!

New Digs

2009-08-07T20:20:00.001-07:00

Today we finished the new coop. Hooray for us (and our pullets). Although the original plan was for 3-4 birds in the end, we have ended up with 6. Each one will lay a different colored egg which will give us a very fun 1/2 dozen. Here are the new digs.

Large roof opens on a hinge for inside access. Small side door opens from the outside to reveal inner mesh door for ventilation, or open the mesh door for side access.

Coop w/o run. White base panel is end of slide out tray for cleaning. Side access door with latch.

Nesting boxes from the inside lined with linoleum tiles

Slotted floor roosting bars remove for easy cleaning.

Floor and doors view from nesting box roof

Coop with the run attached and the girls in there looking around. It took us about 1 1/2 weeks to build the coop. We're happy with how it turned out. My hubs is especially happy to be done with this project.

a Royal upset!

2009-07-13T19:01:00.000-07:00

I remember the day that the chicks arrived. Princess was so small and brownish grey, I couldn't ever recall seeing and Easter Egger that color before. Even when Princess got sick (see last post) the family was on pins and needles saying prayers for Princess. We looked forward to the beautiful blueish green eggs that she would lay this fall...

Sooooo, remember when I was typing away on my last post and saying that hopefully there wouldn't be any more chicken issues in the near future?... well.... turns out this week a shocking piece of news has been revealed to our family...... drumroll please......

Princess is better and back to her normal self and as I compare her to the other chicks I notice...

weird? Princess' tail is pretty tiny compared to the others.... I wonder why?

and boy is she assertive (that's the way that we say aggressive when we talk about girls). And hey, wait a sec.... her comb is sure coming in fast and turning red before the other little chicks...

Princess!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Here, here. Order in the court. Today we announce to the subjects of our kingdom that Princess is indeed..... a prince. He'd prefer to be knows and T.A.F.K.A.P. (The Avian Formerly known as Princess) but the sad fact is that whatever we call him, he must now relocate to a non-urban home. A few people have shown interest. We will be sad to see Prince(ss) go.

We have arranged a chicken trade so that Princess' former owner will not be left without a chicken (she is now claiming my chicken as her new Princess). So as of today we can now decree that all is once again well in the kingdom. ;)

Princess is back

2009-07-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

About 3 days ago we noticed that my daughter's little chick Princess wasn't acting normal. We watched her closely and she wasn't doing her normal chicken things like scratching and pecking at food. I checked the 'help' forum on http://www.backyardchickens.com/ and did what was suggested for unusual behavior.

On day 3 Princess bounced back. We have heaved a huge sigh and are so relieved since she is such a sweet little chick and loved by all. (you can kind of tell in the pic that she will have a beard when she grows up). We have now had our very first chicken incident. Hopefully this will be the last blog post of it's kind!

If Rasheeda can do it so can you!

2009-07-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

My son was given this bag of chips as a snack at church. I have never heard of HOMEGIRLS Potato Chips (It's All That) before.

The chips had some sort of super spices on them and I couldn't quite place what the flavor was supposed to be unless... it was that when you mix all spices together, you come up with a new flavor ;o)

The whole bag as only $0.25 which is a pretty good deal overall.

Do they have these where you live? Honestly, I've been in this area for about 6 years and I've never seen these on the shelf before..... anyway....

The 3 homegirls mentioned on the front are Kathy, Maria, and Rasheeda and they have a message for YOU HomeGirl.

*******Here is what is written on the back.********

MOTHERHOOD: As we look to becoming mothers one day, we will produce children with good manners and good minds. We are the first teachers.

WE ARE GOING TO CHANGES THIS THING
AROUND

MARRIAGE: We should save ourselves for marriage. Why should a man respect us if he can have us before marriage? Respect yourself and everyone will respect you. NO RING...NO THING!

WE ARE GOING TO CHANGES THIS THING AROUND

THE POWER WITHIN US: The power within us is stronger than the negative forces outside of us. So our message to bad influences is ... STEP OFF!

WE ARE GOING TO CHANGES THIS THING AROUND

There is a new bag on the block ... and it's all that ... and a bag of chips

**********************************************************************

So there you have it. When you down and out and surrounded by bad influences. Think about homegirl chips, say the pledge, and change this thing around. You can do it!

So this is love

2009-07-04T10:22:00.000-07:00

We are absolutely loving our chicken experience. Here is the blow by blow so far :o)

The chicks arrived on a Tuesday.

Each of the older children has their own chicken which they picked from the http://www.mypetchicken.com/ website. We did the questionnaire on the website matches chicken breeds to your situation. We ordered 4 chicks total and each chick owner named their own chick. A huge portion of the bickering, meltdowns, and power struggles has ended. I took away a LARGE bunch of toys (the usual fight causing ones) and the children are blissfully happy with their new united purpose. The only care about their own chicks but they have the chickens in common. Nobody wants to hold anybody else's so the there aren't any power struggles or fights. We should have between 18-24 eggs a week when the laying starts.

Yellow Chick - California White (cross between a white leghorn and a California Grey) Will lay white eggs average 6/week. Name "Lulu"

Brown/Grey chick - Easter Egger

Will lay wither Blue, Green, or light pink (unlikely) eggs average 6/week.

Name "Princess"

Brown chick - Welsummer. Will lay med brown eggs with drk brown speckles average 4/week. Name "Lady Windsor"

Black Chick- Australorp. Will lay light brown eggs. Average 6/week. Name "Big Z"

It's been about 3 weeks now and boy have these little girls grown! The novelty hasn't worn off and the children (and I) just love it. I never thought I would feel like I loved a chicken but I do.

Every Monday we take a picture of each chick and weigh them to keep track of their growth. We love the Eglu that we bought and the children have their lawn chairs set up in a row to watch chicks during the day. They sit and narrate what they believe the chickens must be saying. It's all very cute.

We look forward to our first eggs which should arrive late Sep or early Oct. I think I will blow out each chickens first egg to keep. More updates to come :o)

Quilt Winner!

2009-06-28T22:11:00.001-07:00

I'm so grateful for all of the support on the Philadelphia chicken petition. The signature number went from 275 to 433 in 2 weeks! It is soooo close to the 500 signature goal :o) Here is the random number draw...

And the winner is.....

Promises to Keep said...
I signed, had my mom sign and my husband. I am also going to create a link on my blog. Love Chicks!! Aileen

Please send your address to homelyanimal@gmail.com and I'll send out the quilt! Congrats and thanks to everybody for helping to move the petition along.

QUILT GIVE-AWAY!!!!!!!

2009-06-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

Quilt Give-a-way! This is for the quilt from this post. This give-away is to raise awareness for urban chickens. There are many cities that allow urban chickens including Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, L.A., Madison, Miami, Portland, Raleigh, San Fransisco, Seattle, and the list goes on. So I am introducing my newest mini-cause entitled. "a Quilt for the Chickens!"

If you agree, would you please sign this petition? It's for the city of Philadelphia to amend the urban livestock code to exclude hens/chickens. Under the proposal families in the city limits can have up to 4 laying hens per household with proper waste disposal and sanitation facilities in accordance with the city’s guidelines.

Click Here to Sign!!! (pretty please?)

It's soooo fast and you don't have to live in Philadelphia. Also you don't even need to comment on the petition if you don't want to :)

Do it for Lulu :)

Please rest assured that this isn't a huge group that will turn your home town into Chickadelphia. It's a small group of individuals that want the ability to keep chickens as outdoor pets in order to provide eggs. The petition needs 220 more signatures to be proposed to the city for the change AND a perk to raising awareness is that I'll be giving away this baby quilt to a winner a week from Friday! Just leave a comment on this post for an entry.

42 X 39 inches. 100% cotton pieced top and 100% cotton flannel underneath. If you post about it linking the petition on your blog gets you 5 extra entries for a total of 6, just let me know which one you do! (Feel free to use the "a Quilt for the Chickens graphic above ;) )

Disclaimer: I'm not a professional seamstress and this was done on my home machine. I don't see any puckers or issues so I'm pretty confident in the workmanship of this quilt!

IMPORTANT NOTE* YOU DON'T HAVE TO SIGN THE PETITION TO LEAVE A COMMENT AND WIN THE QUILT. THE QUILT IS TO BRING AWARENESS TO THE CAUSE. AS STATED ABOVE "If you agree, would you please sign this petition? " if you don't then don't :o)

Week #3 The Quilt-a-long

2009-06-02T14:22:00.000-07:00

The strips are sew together and cut into blocks. It's actually pretty amazing to me that in 2 days I have 42 blocks done for a quilt which will end up being about 6'X7'. Since I've only ever done baby quilts and tied larger quilts I'm really excited that my first large pieced quilt experience has been so positive so far. I wish I could just keep going instead of waiting until next Monday for the next step but I wouldn't want to get burned out right?

Finally, a motivator!

2009-05-30T10:38:00.001-07:00

I've decided to do the quilt-a-long at OldRedBarnCo. Where each week, Dana the quilting mastermind, guides you through 1 step of the process to create a beautiful quilt (along with a couple hundred other quilters) and in the end (6 weeks later) Voila!

She is also doing a drawing at the end for participants and giving away a Janome 6600p. The machine would just be gravy since your real prize is having made an incredible quilt.

My fabric pic is the summer colors of "Flights of Fancy" designed by Paula Prass, made by Michael Miller. There were a few different color schemes to choose from but this seemed more Frenchy to me somehow.

You may have stopped by Dana's site or maybe even saw a quilt of hers when she did this giveaway last year.

So the current quilt-a-long is to make this same pattern which I thought was very fun. I actually really like Dana's blog. She's fun and smart and her posts are fun and well written. So check it out if you get a chance :)

Old Red Barn Co.

I'll be sure to post my finished quilt at that end of it all. Wish me luck!

On hold for too long.

2009-05-11T08:37:00.000-07:00

I made this little sweater pattern about 3 years ago from the Debbie Bliss book "Baby Knits for beginners". I love the simplicity of the patterns in this book. A beginner can make these cute little projects, but I think that other knitters appreciate the quick, simple and classic patterns. Well, it was just seasonally off for all of the baby boys born to my friends during all of that time. I'm now very happy to say that it has finally found a home and this winter it will realize it's full potential.

Here's mine. Try not to compare it too closely to Debbie's okay? I just love the little jowls, mouth and chin of the sweater model.

Hopefully after ALL of my other of projects are completed, I'll be able to get back to knitting!

Spring distraction #1

2009-05-09T17:15:00.000-07:00

So it's been so hard to concentrate on normal indoor crafting withe nice weather coming fast. The sewing has slowed down a bit and the yard projects have begun. The first completed project (that will HAVE to be how I post them since more have been started than have been finished) is our little fish pond. It has been really great and easy (so far) and has really added a nice serenity to the patio. The plants seem to grow fast and we have gone from 2 lily pads to 6, in only 2 weeks. I found some great water garden info on the following sites. Doesn't have to be a half barrell but mine was free so that is what I used.

http://www.jeffcook.com/hbpond.shtml
http://www.well.com/~gjmurphy/pondindex.htm

From what I've read, water plants can be very easy to divide and share so if you know somebody with a pond you might be able to get some great starter plants free.

Another year, another quilt.

2009-05-07T17:01:00.000-07:00

So lately I've been working on a larger quilt for my bed. I've only finished the first steps of this one but you can get the idea. I'll probably end up having to send it away to actually be quilted but even that is getting cheaper with the recession. This pattern, or at least what this pattern should become is free online at Moda Fabrics. I'll have to modify it a bit to make the end result larger so stay tuned. Hopefull the 54X54 can somehow make it to 110X95-ish without getting weird. Crossing my fingers!

Do you know the Hot Dog Man?

2009-04-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

A few cuts and 30 seconds in the microwave. Hello there.

Another month another quilt

2009-04-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

Same quilt pattern with alternating white strips between the colors. Don't know the destination of this quilt yet but I'll let you know.

Another Day, Another Quilt

2009-01-08T19:10:00.001-08:00

The matching boy version of my first 'Sewing with Nancy' quilt is now done. It's slightly different than the first red quilt, but pretty much the same idea. The weird thing is that the only 2 people that I know who are having boys soon are both really exceptionally good quilters so I'll be hanging on to this until a baby boy is announced by a non-quilting mother!

On these last two quilts that I've made, when I'm sewing at the machine, or when I bring the finished quilt upstairs, Girl #1 asks me, "is that for me?" then I say, "did you want it to be?" and she says 'yes' with such hope in her face. Each of my boys have a quilt so maybe before I dig into my Nest quilt, I'll make her her toddler quilt and she can help pic her fabrics. This should be the next project and afterwards I'll move on to the 'Mommy quilt'.

Still no word back from Nancy regarding the email that I sent her back when I finished my first quilt. I thought Nancy was different.... only time will tell. ;o)-

Merry Christmas to me post #2

2009-01-07T19:34:00.000-08:00

I had some money in my paypal account and have always loved 'Nest' by Tula Pink. It is so appealing on so many levels for me. Before Christmas I went on ebay and found a jelly, charms, and a layer cake all of Nest for a great deal. As soon as I finish my current quilting projects then it's on to my Nest quilt. I've very excited about and it will be my first larger than baby quilt. I also think that Tula's 'Neptune' is so beautiful...maybe that can be for next year :o)-

Merry Christmas to me

2009-01-05T09:33:00.000-08:00

For Christmas this year we had a serious budget which I'm pretty sure wasn't unique to our little family. In addition to outside gifts, we drew names and each had to make a present for your Christmas person. I was very surprised with boy #1 who wanted to make a make up kit for his little sister. I took him down and let him choose the fabrics that he wanted to use and here is what he chose. We bought a chapstick and some princess jewely and the kit was a hit. For the first time since I've had children, I observed that boy #1 finally understood the joy of giving. We hope to continue this tradition every year.

Could it be???

2009-01-01T12:35:00.001-08:00

I've won a give-away in blogging land. My very first win and I'm just so excited. It was from the Caffeinated Crafter whose blog I just love. She does a bit of everything and it's always so fun! It's box of all different crafting supplies. The CC wrote, "I'll raid my studio for fabric scraps, ribbon, beads, yarn, fur... you name it. I'll stuff the box full... " so I'm so excited and can't wait to blog about the contents of my mystery craft box!

Slight detour

2008-12-30T06:47:00.000-08:00

On my way home from a pediatric doctor's appointment for the boys, we swung through the garbage dump lot. Since we live in the city limits, garbage items aren't taken directly to a landfill, but rather a large paved lot with a row of dumpsters on one side and a pile of bigger things that will be broken up and then taken to the land fill.

Anyway, we swung through and couldn't believe what people were throwing away. First of all we got this highchair. It's not even wobbly, doesn't have stains, and the snap, leather strap, and slides all are in normal working order. Why it would be headed for the landfill and not put on freecycle or craigslist 'free' is beyond me.

The same day we also got a bedside table (for me), an old pram, and a backless vintage chair/seat with an upholstered top and a small roll on each side. 2 weeks ago we got a step 2 playhouse, you know the one with the pink roof and purple door?

In the past few years I've gotten the following things on freecyle or craigslist 'free' section. Baby clothes, a pop-up camper, a toddler bed, couch/love seat/chair combo, my piano, fabric, futon bunk bed, baby swing, and that's not even counting trash pics. Sad to think that so much useful stuff is discarded, but it's nice to be able to intercept something that is otherwise headed to the landfill.

Talk about a total 180!

2008-12-28T07:43:00.000-08:00

I have officially completed my very first Sewing with Nancy quilting project. More than 3 years ago I made each of my boys a very simple 4" alternating squares quilt that was crib size, but my corners were off, the binding..questionable, and puckers galore. In the end they were loved and well used but reaked of 'beginning quilter'.

After watching one of Nancy's more recent show series ("Already Cut and Ready to Quilt"), I knew it was time. I taped the show, and did each step with her, pausing and sewing, pausing and sewing. Here is the result. (this is a jelly roll quilt).

I honestly expected my quilt to be mediocre and figured that it would be better than my previous quilts, but not quite good enough to give away. Well, not only can I not believe that I even made this, my husband kept saying, "that's really good" everytime he glaced back at the finished project.

It's 40 X 40-ish the backing is cotton flannel. Can you believe my corners worked?

Anyway, the boy-ish version of this same quilt is already underway and soon to be finished. All it needs in machine quilted and the binding done and voila, another quilt!

I wrote an email to Nancy linking it to pics of my quilt. So I'll be watching my site map to see if we get any hits from Beaver Dam, WI ;o) (Dare to dream)

The quilt is tied up and ready to be given to my friend Alyssa who had a baby girl earlier this month. Hopefully this is the first of many successful quilting projects. Stay tuned!

1 - It's what he wanted.

2008-12-24T21:10:00.000-08:00

We went to see Santa at the mall. As per his request, we will be leaving oatmeal cookies out tonight. (This is our vault recipe for oatmeal cookies.)

Oatmeal Cookies (Aunt Susan)

3 eggs
1 t vanilla
1 cup dried fruit (craisens/raisins)

***mix and soak for 1 hour

1 C butter
1 C brown sugar
1 C white sugar

***cream together

2 1/2 C flour
1 t salt
2 t baking soda
2 C oatmeal

Mis first 3 ingredients with creamed mixture. Combine all dry ingredients and mix together with wet mixture. Form balls and place 2" apart on cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes. You won't be sorry!

2 - It just wouldn't feel right...

2008-12-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

It just wouldn't feel right not to have gingerbread houses every year. I've baked off the houses and they have been assmebled for decorating. I use the Martha Stewart recipe (<--the words are the link!) for these and it's good. Pics will follow our decorating session on Christmas day!

3 - Jolly good, jolly good.

2008-12-22T15:12:00.000-08:00

English Toffee

2 c. butter
2 c. sugar
4 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. light corn syrup
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup slivered almonds (or ground, if you like)
1 tsp. vanilla
12 oz. milk or semisweet chocolate, melted

In a heavy saucepan, melt butter and then add sugar until dissolved. Add water, corn syrup and salt. Mix well and stir over medium heat to 290 degrees on your candy thermometer. Do not turn up the heat to speed this up.

Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Pour onto a lightly buttered large cookie sheet and with mitted hands, tilt to disperse evenly. When cool ( I put mine on the porch until it is hard), pour chocolate over and spread with spatula. Sprinkle almonds over the top. Break with a knife and store in a tin that is not airtight, in the freezer. This can be halved to make 1 1/4 lbs. This recipe makes 2.5 lbs. of candy and is great for gift giving.

4 - Everybody needs one

2008-12-21T19:01:00.000-08:00

Everybody needs a good whole wheat bread recipe. This one is just delicious and if you like a lighter bread you can easily do 50/50 white and wheat flour with wonderful ressults.

1 3/4 C very warm water
1/4 C sugar
1/4 C oil
1/2 T salt
1 T dough enhancer
1 T gluten
2 T SAF instant yeast
5 1/2 C wheat flour

Combine all ingreadients in mixer in order listed except add only 3 cups of flour. Add yeast on top of flour. Mix for 2 minute, then let dough rest for 10 minutes. Stir down, then add remaining flour. Let knead for 8 mins (16 by hand) then divide dough in half.

Form dough and place into pans. Let rise until doubled in size. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes. Makes 2 loaves.

5 - this 'aint no Charlie Brown Tree!

2008-12-20T19:19:00.000-08:00

I have died and gone to heaven! Trader Joes had what looked like very cute little Christmas trees in the entrance to their store last week. Upon closer inspection they were actually rosemary trees. I love being able to go and cut a little sprig of fresh herbs off of a live plant everytime I need them.

Merry Christmas to me!

I have resisted the urge to decorate this little guy and have just left the bow on top that it came with.

For today's recipe I'm putting a link to my grilled flatbread (<--- the words are the link) for todays recipe even though it's a repeat, it is one worth making!

6 - I'm always thinking 'corn' who isn't? ;o)

2008-12-19T13:08:00.000-08:00

I just love corn, cornbread, creamed corn, on the cob, and popped. This is my favorite carmel corn recipe and the one I use for our family.

4 C popped corn
1 C brown sugar
1/4 C light corn syrup
1/2 C butter or margarine
1/2 t baking soda

put popped corn in a LARGE bowl bring all other ingredients, except soda, to a boil, take off of heat. Stir in soda, pour over corn mixture, spread on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 5 mins, stir and bake for 5 more minutes. Cool and break apart.

7 - What's Christmas without Shortbread?

2008-12-18T12:50:00.000-08:00

I bought this beautiful shortbread pan at Fantes in Philadelphia and I've been waiting to use it. Today was the day. Although it can be used for cakes too, I used it for shortbread which was very smooth and very good without being too sweet. A 9X9 or 8X8 will also work. Here is the recipe.

3/4 C. butter at room temp
1/2 C. powdered sugar
1/2 t. Vanilla
1 1/2 C. flour

Cream butter until light and fluffy
cream in sugar then vanilla
work in flour
Knead dough on unfloured board until smooth
press dough into greased pan

Prick all over the top with a fork and bake at 325 for 30-35 minutes or until lightly browned. Take out of oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Turn out of pan and cut while warm.

8 - Let's not forget the savory things.

2008-12-17T18:53:00.000-08:00

1 Loaf Bread cubed
3 cloves pressed garlic mixed with
1 stick melted butter

Toss and coat bake at 350◦ on sheet for 10 mins then mix (repeat bake/mix until browned)

9 - What happend to your other categories?

2008-12-16T10:40:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know 'Food & Drink' is the only category growing lately, but it's that time of year okay? Stay tuned, one can't keep cooking forever...or can they?

Soft Ginger Cookies
(Tobi McCleod, Lethbridge, AB)

1 1/2 c. butter
2 c. sugar
1/2 c. molasses
2 eggs
5 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ginger
Combine wet & dry ingredients and mix well. Roll each 1" ball in sugar and flatten with fork. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Cookies will be soft when they come out so let cool on sheets. Store in airtight containers. Makes 2-3 dozen.

Let's just say that over half of these never made it into my Christmas tins!

10- So much to eat, so little time.

2008-12-15T10:11:00.000-08:00

Here are my 10 recipes of Christmas countdown. While some are mine, others are not so I'll be sure to give proper credit to the culinary masterminds out there. Enjoy!

Cake Balls
1 baked 9 X 13 cake
1 tub cream cheese frosting
melting chocolate for dipping.
Could this be any easier?

Make a cake and cool it completely
crumble your cooled cake into a large bowl
add all of frosting
form balls and refridgerate.
cover with chocolate, sprinkles, nuts or whatever you want.

My aunt emailed me the link below to try these. She thought that I'd like them and she was right. They are just delicious and there are so many combinations that can be done so there is room for creativity which I love. Enjoy!

Bakerella Cake Balls

Move Over Manwich

2008-12-04T18:56:00.000-08:00

My cousin's wife got this recipe for sloppy Joe's and in my quest to find my own sloppy Joe recipe for the vault, I now need to look no further. I've modified it a teeny bit, but we think this is the best one we've ever had. We recently had it for dinner as an open faced sloppy Joe on toasted whole wheat Italian Pane* and it was superb!

3 lbs hamburger
2 C chopped onion
1 C chopped celery
2 cans tomatoe soup
3 T brown sugar
2 T vinegar
1 T kitchen boquet
2 T worcestershire sauce

brown hambuger, add celery, add all other ingredients, bring to a boil and serve.

* also great on hamburger buns!

Insiders pie tip #1

2008-11-27T19:32:00.000-08:00

I used to be constantly stuck with pie recipes that were designed for 9" or little tin pie plates. Since I never feel okay about a skimpy pie (who could?) I found the cutest little 4" pie plates and now I just double all recipes, fill my big 10" pie plate, and then make mini pies with the remaining filling. There are always uses for the little extra pies and they turn out so cute. I've also let my kids make their own little crusts and pies in these plates, when I'm making a bigger pie. Definately worth the little investment :o)

This is what their eating in my heaven.

2008-11-25T10:27:00.000-08:00

I saw this Apple Walnut Torta on Giada's thanksgiving special (I think it was called 'Thanksgiving for 2') and boy #2 (apple lover) was very interested. I told him that if he wanted we could make it together. Next day, we made with pecans istead of walnuts and minus the orange ingredients (I can't stand things with orange essence probably due to a "I'll have the orange flavored flouride treatment please" moment in my youth) It was so great that one 8" round was not enough... we were left wanting. AbFab in everyway. Definately will be made again and again and again...

The Stiffled Escape Artist

2008-11-21T11:15:00.000-08:00

"Mommy, take my lock off."

The Great Debate

2008-11-21T10:38:00.000-08:00

Okay, so not really a great debate, but one that matters...to a select group of people. Which sewing show is the best. Stop the presses and pay attention to this one due to it's vast importance :o) and the finalists are....

Sewing with Nancy / Fons & Porter's love of Quilting

And the winner is....(drum roll) Nancy Zeeman form 'Sewing with Nancy". There is a reason that this show has been on for 25 years. I've been watching both shows every week for a few months now and I've found that Nancy is good for the beginner and advanced quilter alike not to mention her use of simple and tradition methods mixed with current trends, and even (*gasp) computers/photoshop. Here camera angles and close-ups are better AND she has doesn't have any awkward talking transitions since it's only her.

Although Fons & Porter make beautiful quilts and obviously have an extensive knowledge of the craft, their show seemed like it was aimed a a very specific audience. I struggled to see close-ups of just how they were doing their applique and piecing things. The dialog between them seemed distracting for me since it was at time, awkward.

I'm proud to say that I'm 'going with Nancy', and after months of watching, learning, and contemplating, I'm ready to start my very first serious quilt with an idea taken from Nancy's recent segments entitled, "Already Cut and Ready to Quilt". Normally I'd say, 'wish me luck', but I feel confident that it will be a success based on the explanation and teaching style that Nancy has. I can't promise that it'll be finished quickly, at least not in it's entirety, but it is the next project in line.

Jelly rolls are on sale at my JoAnn's for $6.99 so I did the only sensible thing and bought four and some matching quarter bundles. Fun times ahead!

FYI: S.W.N. is on 6:30am saturday mornings on my local PBS station.

Halloween Haps

2008-11-01T08:45:00.000-07:00

Halloween was fun this year, among other things, we baked a few treats. This was my first attempt at popcorn balls, and although they were good, they weren't great, which as a recipe is what you need to make it onto the site. The Sugar cookies (<---click the words) however were very good, and I would dare say that I've found my final sugar cookie recipe. I have never made a recipe this good and although they got mixed reviews on www.allrecipes.com they worked wonderfully for me. I kept the bulk of the dough in the fridge while I rolled out small batches, and I also 'floured' my rolling surface with confectioner's sugar instead of flour. Great, great, great, and even still soft and great the next day after being left out. Definately a enduring quality :o) Happy Halloween!

Busy times

2008-10-27T11:43:00.000-07:00

It's officially cold outside. We've started lighting fires in the fireplace, we brought in the succulent pot, finished up the seasonal decorating outside and I'm almost done converting the basement into children's winter playroom of fun. (Only a few More boxes to go through, then vacuum and voila). I've set up my own little sewing haven in the basement with both machines on one table and all of my fabric sorted, washed, folded and categorized for me to get started on my projects for my 2 craft fairs coming next month.

So as of right now, I'm officially behind on EVERYTHING! I wondering if there will ever be a time when my whole house is clean at the same time. Despite the business around here, I promise to do better at doing regular posts.

One has to prioritize :o)

I'll be putting this one on the tradition list

2008-10-16T12:55:00.000-07:00

I read about building fairy houses in the fall as a family activity and thought it was worth a try. My kids are still small so they loved this. There were collective duties and individual ones so everybody contributed and felt like they had a special job to do. They were very serious about doing a good job to make sure that the fairies would have a really nice place to live during the cold winter months. They would like to build another one tomorrow and maybe one more the day after that, so I'll definately be adding this one to the tradition list for the fall!

One step closer to princess

2008-10-13T08:40:00.000-07:00

Looking through my old photo albums there are numerous pics of little me with total and undeniable bed head, we're talking hair that hadn't seen a brush that day...at all. After 2 boys, when I had girl#1 I decided that I'd always make sure that her hair was cute and brushed or a pony tail at least. Here is a tutorial on one of my favorite styles to do for her cute little head. I call it 'the Maid Marian'.

Requirements:
-Hair long enough for a single ponytail
-basic knowledge of french braiding
-one of the combs w/the pointy handle
-6 elastics or hair restraints.
-water bottle
(click to enlarge pictures for a better look)

1.) Part hair right down the middle from forehead all the way to the back of the neck. make one side a pony tail.

2.) Using the pointy side of the comb, starting and ending at the part (about3-5 inches back from the forehead depending on head size) section out a half circle on one side of the head. Secure both loose sections of hair.

3.) Repeat step #2 but for the other side of the head, creating a section on the crown of the head that is a full circle. Tie up the hair in the circle so it won't get in your way.

4.) Starting at the front of the head, do a french braid and only add from the hairline side of the braid letting the bulk of it ride along the part of the circle. Pick up hair until about 1/2" after the ear. Braid until the end.

5.) Repeat step#4 on the other side. You should be left with something very similar to this when you're done. Almost done.

For a true Maid Marian, pull the hair from the circle back and down and secure into a pony tail at the bottom of the circle. Join both braids together at the bottom of the circle and facen them. Let the rest of the hair hang down underneath.

For a cute variation, pull the hair from the circle, braids, and the bottom all together into a pony tail.

Open for business...finally!

2008-10-09T19:19:00.000-07:00

I've have offically opened my etsy store and I'm so excited to start really adding things. I currently have barrett sets listed but I'll be putting on some knitted items (hopefully tomorrow) and other crafts in the weeks to follow. Let me know what you think and how I can improve. Here is the link (and a pic of some of my barretts)

I'll be adding pics and a real link to my side bar when I get the chance just in case you want to pop in and see what new. Cross your fingers for me :o)-

May I suggest separate tents?

2008-10-06T17:02:00.000-07:00

I bought the $1 pack of beans called '16 bean soup mix'. It's actually was not a soup mix at all, but more of a 16 dried bean variety pack. No matter what it was called, it made a very delicious bean soup. Here is the recipe.

1 bag '16 bean soup mix'
1 med yellow onion diced
3 stalks of celery diced
1 med carrot sliced at an angle
3 cartons of natural chicken stock
salt/pepper/ground cumin/garlic salt to taste.

Rinse beans and put in hot water on stove. When water reaches a boil leave it for 2 minutes and then remove from heat, cover and let sit one hour. Drain beans.

Saute onions, celery, carrots until soft. Add salts, pepper, cumin and pour in chicken stock and add beans. Cook on low for 1 1/2 hrs or until beans are done.

I ended up putting in about 1/2 tsp of ground cumin and 1 tsp of garlic salt.

It was cheap, healthy AND delicious. Enjoy!

A very small harvest

2008-10-02T17:23:00.000-07:00

The pods are out on the impatiens and since they were so beautiful this year I decide to do a little collection to start our own next spring. First of all let me say that I am a perennial person, my husband is the one who loves annuals (how is this marriage working?) so every year we each do our own gardening on the plants/flowers that we planted. This year I thought that his impatiens were so beautiful (I can admit it) that I decided to get some seeds together so we can plant the same ones next year. To contain the little pod explosions I placed the pods in a an envelope made from parchment paper, sealed the top, shook it and voila, you can see the flipped pods and seeds everywhere.

The seeds are now drying on my kitchen window sill so they will be ready to plant next year. Fun for the kids and me to do a fun little project that will add to a beautiful garden in the spring.

Will it ever end?

2008-10-01T18:26:00.000-07:00

Yes, another sweater post. (Gee, H.A. can't you make anything else?) I'm sorry, I just can't help myself, I love to knit. I currently have 2 projects in the works and I'm toying with the idea of doing a book, but who could commit to that with so many other projects in line?

Anyway, here is the another one from the Beehive classic collection. This is the honeycomb layette pattern. Although this pattern was from the 50s or 60s (I can't remember which) it has been re-released and also has a matching hat and bootie option which I did not make. It's a little cardigan as seen in the bottom detail picture.I can honestly say that I will NEVER knit this sweater again, since it was a real struggle to stay focused on it with my short attention span, but I love how it turned out and it looks so darling on a little body :o)

Isn't that little baby head just so cute?

Shoot me an email if you want to know where to get this pattern :o)

Playing catch-up

2008-09-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

9 whole days since my last post! Crazy, crazy times. Just as a catch up on what goes on in the life of a homely animal, I've finally finished the modifications of a new muffin recipe (coming soon), the upstairs bthrm has been tiled/painted, re-painted the kitchen and had the floor boards installed, finished grouting the backsplash tiles in the kitchen, cleaned the over-painted part off of the front door knobs/locks AND sorted every single little piece of children's clothing that is floating around my home packing up 2 huge bags for freecycle and goodwill. Oh and did I mention knitting the kitty cat hat AND last but not least...drumroll please.... "hello beautiful" I say out loud as I look at my 'new' huskylock serger... it was time. (there is no excuse now with the husky AND 'the form') Also I'm totally loving my new bobbin holder (courtesy of my great husband). Coming soon is a tutorial on making your own grocery bags. When I say soon, I'm talking in the next couple of days, so stay tuned! :o)

p.s. that was the one and only pumpking that our plants yielded this year. The stem was not so mysteriously broken off within about 5 minutes of detaching it from the vine. "Mom, you're supposed to do that."

And the winner is...

2008-09-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

The winner of the kitty cat hat give-away is.....(drumroll) .....

Linda from Parker's Paradise who had 16 spots from #167-182 from commenting, posting, and linking. Congratulations to Linda and a huge THANK YOU to everybody that participated in the very first Homely Animal give-away. I'll actually be starting another give-away in a few days so check back for that.

The time has come

2008-09-14T07:36:00.000-07:00

So, in case you haven't noticed...I'm stuck on skirts. Mostly since they're easy and kind of difficult to mess up. (Okay so I messed one up once). I've decided to branch out into the world of tops and dresses (*gasp) but don't worry, to help me on the journal I have enlisted the help of my new best sewing friend...the size 2T dress form. It took some planning since girl-1 just barely turned 2 last week and is a pistol! I cut the strips of duct tape in advance, employed boy-1 as the chocolate chip distributor, and my husband was the stabilizer.

duct tape
old unwanted t-shirt
blunt end scissors
bowl of chocolate chips
at least 2 assistants

Once you wrap up the bod, (you can use saran wrap for the neck if you want) carefully cut the form up the back center and remove it from your subject. You can then tape it back up, cut a cardboard round and cover the bottom and sleeves and then stuff it through the top. I did double buns and a headband to make sure that no hair got stuck on tape. I had my son give out a chocolate chip every 20 seconds to keep the subject happy while the taping was happening.

There are some great tutorials on youtube and on the etsy lab website. Every duct tape form that I saw drew the center, waist,, hip lines on it while it was still on the subject. This will have to come later with my form since we had to be as quick as possible with this one. I'm sure and older subject would be a little easier! I'll keep you posted about my future sewing project involving 'the form'.

I'd love to know if anybody else tries this and how it works for you.

this pretty much sums it up

2008-09-11T18:11:00.000-07:00

I took this pic the other day of girl#1 in the backyard. This pretty much sums her up. Bare feet, hand me down boy's jeans, a sparkly blue skirt, and her hair-do of choice, 2 buns. I can't believe that she is 2. Where has the time gone? Bug touching, shoeless, explorer and climber extraordinaire. She puts the boys to shame when she touches crickets and pets frogs.

I did darts on the skirt to see if I could create a shape that was less bulky at the top yet, still twirly. We're closer but not quite there yet. Many thanks to Allison Faunce of DiscoveryDenim (can you say 'super talent'? she should make a cape for herself!) for giving me some of her leftover cape remnants which were used for this project. Oddly enough girl#1 pretends to fly in this skirt.

When I figure out my ultimate skirt pattern (it's all relative isn't it?) I'll post it for sure :o)

Happy Birthday L.J.

Dress my monkey

2008-09-05T19:51:00.000-07:00

My 13 year old neighbor has a little monkey named Penelope. Penelope has been to 4countries and 6 states and has been a family member for years. A few days ago she asked me, "Will you make a little dress for my monkey?" (If I only had a nickel for every time somebody asked me that). Last night was the night. I had her pick some fabric and then we set to do a test dress from a fabric remnant. Here is the final result. I've actually never made anything for a body this small and it presented a few issues but worked out fine in the end. (Although I won't be opening an etsy shop for monkey dresses any time soon). I always wonder what I'll end up doing with my little fabric remnants. Who knew that the left over lemons would end up this way?

Kitty Cat Hat Give-away!

2008-08-30T17:07:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I don't know why it didn't dawn on me before, with winter right around the corner (duh), to offer a kitty cat hat give-away. I constantly get comments on my daughter's hat and I've had several people ask if I could make them one, so I figure that somebody might want one right? I can knit it up in a snap (big time sacrifice I know) so the winner can choose one of the sizes listed below. It's made from white, 100% merino wool (it's soft don't worry) and is available in sizes 2,4 & 6. Super cute and warm around the neck, ears and outter cheeks ;o)

Here are the rules.

1- If you leave a comment on this post you get 1 entry, that means one comment each okay? (so easy)

2- If you post about my give-away with a link on your site you get 5 entries. (you can do it!) Here's the direct link http://homelyanimal.blogspot.com/2008/08/kitty-hat-give-away.html

3- If you put the image with a link in your blog's side bar (like I did on my side bar, ta-da!) you get 10 entries. Rgt click and save the pic here--->

(as lame as it sounds, please let me know in your comment which of the 3 entry methods you chose, it'll make it sooo much easier for me to count than it would be having to check my site stats.)

Since this is my first give-away and my site is fairly new, your chances are very good.

**I'll ship it to anywhere in the world. Contest closes Sept 15th, 2008 Good Luck!

Prioritize, prioritize, prioritize!

2008-08-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

I was at Michael's yesterday and I saw that there are some new lines of yarn that I hadn't seen before (and believe me I'm very familiar with the yarn at Michael's). I agonized over one particular style putting it in my cart and returning it to the shelf three times, finally deciding that I have enough yarn in my stash that needs to be used and therefore can't justify buying more....yet.
One project that I'll be making for sure next month is a hat for girl-1. The pattern was an old one from Beehive knits called, "pussy cat" which is part of the Nanny collection. (We had this exact same hat as children) I've made it twice and now I'm in need of the next size up. Not only is a so cute to me, but girl-1 one begs to wear it. Just when I thought she couldn't get cuter, ladies and gentlemen (like any men read this blog.) I give you...winter kitty.

I'm actually really excited this year since girl-2 will also be wearing one of the smaller kitty hats and then I'll have 2 kitties at once. How lucky can a mom be?

The other side of summer

2008-08-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

Summer went so fast this year that I really can't believe that it's almost over. I send boy1 and boy2 to preschool/pre-K next week and I wonder how it will change at our house. Our tomatoes are still ripening, but once they're gone, they're gone for the season. I'll miss having all of the kids home all day, among other things but I know I'll have more time to be able to prepare more fun stuff for them when they come home.

It's been so great to have a back yard. It's our first full summer with a 'childproof' backyard, free from building supplies and dangerous things. We reseeded it and it so nice and green, I will be sad to see this season end. I'm not really ready to trade in bug-bitten, bruised, scraped, and dirty summer legs, for pristine white winter legs but we've got a few more weeks before shorts are replaced by jeans.

So as sewing season begins I hope to complete and post more of my projects and to also find more fun stuff on other blogs once they do the same. Oh, and there is Halloween and the costume making which will shortly be underway. Here's to a wonderful summer!

Time for more sewing projects!

2008-08-26T10:51:00.000-07:00

I know, you're wondering if my pant size is growing as fast as the number of posts in my 'food & drink' category. Well here is another real winner so get out your bundt pan and let's go!

18-20 frozen rolls
1/2 (3oz) pkg cooked butterscotch pudding
1 stick of butter or margarine
3/4 t. of cinnamon
1/2 C. brown sugar

Night before: grease/spray bundt pan put in frozen rolls. In sm. sauce pan, melt butter, add sugar, pudding mix, cinnamon mix until it resembles a grainy sauce. Pour over rolls and cover with wax paper overnight to rise. Next morning bake at 350 for 25 mins.

I put mine in the cold oven the night before and set the oven to start automatically. If you have this feature, it's a nice smell to wake up to :o)- My husband likes 1/2 C. chopped Pecans under the rolls so that's an option if you like nuts.

Presenting the "Kitchen Collection"

2008-08-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

Okay so as part of my freecycle fabric acquisition, I got an old box of kitchen curtains. The joy was that they were nice vintage fabric, 2 of everything, many with ruffles already intact, the non-joy was the smokey-moth-ball essence that stayed with them through the first washing (not exactly how I want my girls to smell as they twirl). Anyway, as you can guess, skirts, skirts and more skirts are planned from this box. Many of the tops are already made to hang from a bar, so there is a place for the elastic to slide right in. Skirt Number one has been completed and is a hit. Stay tuned for more episodes of......the Kitchen Collection.

To die for

2008-08-22T15:28:00.001-07:00

Tonight we had one of our favorites. Grilled flatbread doesn't last at our house, the kids just can't get enough. Is it so easy and so incredibly delicious that you'll stuff yourselves silly. Here is the recipe.

4 to 4 1/2 C. flour
2 Tbs rapid rising yeast
2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp olive oil
hot water
2 Tbs. fresh rosemary

Mix flour, sugar, salt, yeast, and rosemary together. In a separate cup add 1 3/4 C. hot water (from the tap) and then add olive oil. Mix by hand or in a mixer until the dough is smooth. Cover for 10 minutes. Heat up your grill! Split dough in to 6, roll into 8" circles. Brush the top of each circle with olive oil and then pick it up and stretch it roughly 2" bigger all the way around. Slap it oil side down on the grill. Brush olive oil on the top side and grind on coarse salt. Check the bottom and flip when grill marks are med brown (3-4 minutes).

Voila. These are fabulous with Italian meals, great as pizza for a grill. (add salt to the first side, flip it, add sauce and toppings and close the grill for the last 3 minutes). You will be ga-ga for this recipe once you try it, or they don't call me the Homely Animal ;)

My favorite price

2008-08-21T10:45:00.000-07:00

So I've recently had the sewing bug, mostly due to the fact that my neighbor gave me her extra sewing machine AND it's sort of the season for it since the weather is changing. Unfortunately my budget didn't match my sudden need for fabric so I put out a 'wanted' for fabric on freecycle. I got so many answers and A LOT of fabric although not in the form I had hoped for. I've made it my fall sewing challenge to use all of it for useful things so here is my first project.

4 large Fabric books. There were a lot of 100% cotton sheets and most co-ordinated since they were from the same line. The result is a picnic quilt (I had enough to make 2 so I think one will be a give-away). I always need an outdoor blanket for picnics, watching fireworks, etc. and I'm always agonizing over which one of our normal house blankets to subject to the outdoors but...those days are over! The kids like to run and stand on their favorite fabric square. Who knew it would be such a hit? and hey where else can you get a stylish picnic quilt that is rated for 15,000 double rubs?

It's about time

2008-08-17T08:35:00.000-07:00

This week at the JoAnn's superstore I finally was able to replace my older pin cushion. I've had the little tomato (no joke) since I got in a starter kit required for my 8th grade home ec class. It of course has an overstretched elastic band on it and my name written underneath. The upgrade is a circular magnetic pin keeper that is already so handy. I'm still keeping the tomato but it will get far less use now that there is a new sheriff in town ;)

Everyone else's cookies

2008-08-15T19:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I know that I just did a flax seed post, but today I made chocolate chip cookies and (you guessed it) I added some extras. I used to be terrible at making cookies. Everybody else seemed to make great cookies and even when copying recipes to the T, mine didn't work out until... I started making the Nestle Tollhouse recipe. (No, I don't work for Nestle or anything like that) It is the first CCC recipe that I've tried that is consistently good even when I put other stuff in or use substitutes. Today I made the normal recipe + 1/4 C. flax seed + 1/4 C. shredded coconut and then milk choc chips instead of semi-sweet. They were absolutely fabulous!

Next time I'm going to try substituting flax for part of the fat and Almond meal for part of the flour (FYI also a great addition to baked goods just in case you didn't already know! Coming soon directions for making almond meal which is really just coarsely grinding frozen almonds, okay so that is the method, frozen=no almond butter)

The knitting bag

2008-08-13T15:43:00.000-07:00

My grandma (we called her 'Nanny') was an avid knitter. She always had something in the works and she knitted for everybody. When I'd go to her house for the weekends, we'd knit together. She had a HUGE stash of yarns and a giant bag of tried and true vintage patterns to pick from.

When she died many of her things were in disarray. I lived far away, couldn't attend the funeral, but the next time I went to visit my parents I was given Nanny's knitting bag. The pattern books had the same sweaters that I had seen her knit. There were also 2 zip-locs filled with misc buttons, all of her knitting tools, and her scissors. I have since knitted from many of the same patterns for my children and it's really an honor for me. >>fast forward.

So, I was working on a little 'next summer' outfit for girl-1 today and I reached the moment of choosing buttons. This moment is always a reflective time since I get to use Nanny's buttons. I know that when I buy craft supplies I always have a vision of what that item will become and what it will be like on a finished project. I wonder what she imagined for each set and I hope that my vision can make something equally as beautiful as her vision. Props to all of the great crafters out there who took the time to create beautiful things for their families and in turn inspired today's craft creators! She is the inspiration for many of the things that I create. Who is yours?

The taste of success...finally

2008-08-11T11:04:00.000-07:00

When boy-1 was quite small I decided to design and knit a Nordic sweater for him. I got my graph paper and got started. I learned some interesting facts 1-the traditional colors for a Nordic sweater are/were black and white since those are naturally occurring wool colors 2-The more colors you add to the design, the more cross overs occur on the inside making the sweater warmer (a good thing in Scandinavia) 3-Since it's suggested to alternate colors every 3 stitches or so, pattern sequences are best when small and repeated often. The last thing is that generally the multi-tonal pattern exists on the sleeves, chest, and shoulders of Nordic sweaters since, while working outside sweaters were tucked into pants and couldn't be bulky on the bottom or they would not fit....so these were my guidelines...phew, now for the project. After graphing out and test knitting what seemed like a whole heard of wonky horses, I finally got a winning reindeer for the final design.

I did some small designs around edges and around the shoulder/chest region. Minus my designs this can be a blank slate basic cardigan pattern where any design could be added. I have this in both 12-18 mos size and a 2T size. I'd be happy to email it to anybody interested. Just let me know which size.

Here is another example of the same basic cardigan with a different design. (Click photo to enlarge)

So many questions...

2008-08-10T18:43:00.000-07:00

So of the many questions that I've been asked this week (can a fish swim in soda pop? what about milk? can we eat clouds?) I got another 'what's that?'. The answer is what I call 'yogurt mix' and it is totally acceptable and satisfies the questioner (I started using it by adding it to my yogurt). The answer to the same question when a grown up asks is, flax seed. Now days I put it in a lot of things.... banana muffins, cookies, breads, etc. and it is a hit. It's benefits are great (<--this link also has recipes although I haven't tried any of them) and since it's not so noticeable the kids are happy to oblige and even want to take turns mixing it in. I get it as whole seeds and bring it myself in a mini grinder. Once it's ground it starts to lose some of it's 'power' so I keep it in the fridge for freshness. Definitely a nice addition to our diets, and oh, did I mention that you can substitute if for part of the fat in your recipes? Nice touch.

Update**

You can sneak in a Tbs here or a 1/4 C. there. It can be substituted for eggs in pancakes, muffins and cookies (1T flax+3T water &let sit for a few minutes) and for fats 3T flax = 1T fat. Your recipes will darken a little faster but you can use your own recipes. I put it in Choc Chip cookies. muffins, breads, etc and the kids (and I) can't tell at all.

Confessions of a cheap-skate

2008-08-09T20:00:00.000-07:00

When I had girl-1 we had A LOT of boy things. For a cross-over project (from boy item to girly delight) I took an old mirror that had small blue beads around the edge and converted it. With the fake flowers from a sprig that I got on clearance, I glued little flowers around the edge to cover up the blue. I don't really use fake flowers very much at all, but for about $1.50 it turned out fine and was a nice addition to that particular wall which up until that time had been bare.

Now for the fresh bread

2008-08-08T17:26:00.001-07:00

I dragged my poor little family on a trip to the super craft store about 1/2 hr from our house. After a somewhat disappointing trip through the clearance department (you win some you lose some right?) we loading up to come home. My husband and I realized that we were actually quite close to the pick-your-own farm in the area so we headed over to pick whatever was there. The result...

Our little helpers were pretty zealous in their peach picking so we ended up with A LOT of peaches at different stages of ripeness. The solution was Day 1- peach cobbler. I used Paula Deen's recipe which I had heard about. My husband votes it as his favorite peach cobbler, but who would vault a recipe after only one attempt....I feel a cobbler trial coming on. Day 2- fresh peaches on vanilla ice cream...mmm. Day 3 (today) peach jam. I just used the recipe on the pectin package. I still have about 20 peaches left so we'll see what happens tomorrow.

At the very top of the 'need' list

2008-08-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

I saw the link on how to make twirly skirts on my friend Sarah's blog and I just knew I had to try my hand at this project. The sizing started at a 90 (for European size chart click here) so I set to work and made one for Girl1. It could use a little more twirl so I'm going to put a little more fabric in the one I make tonight. Here is the link. Enjoy!

I just needed a reason

2008-08-07T09:04:00.000-07:00

I made this little 'set' for girl2 who was born in May, no I don't live in Alaska or south of the equator, but I was looking for a reason to knit and what better reason right? The pattern for the booties was from Zoe Mellor's bootie book and the hat was from Knitting for Baby. You might be thinking, could a baby born in May have occasion to wear a newborn hat and slippers? Well the answer is 'no' so these go in the gift pile. Somebody I know MUST be having a girl this fall or winter right?

Worth the effort

2008-07-10T06:21:00.000-07:00

I've been really into making my own yogurt lately and both the kids and I are loving it. Here is a quick run-down of the process in case you're interested in giving this a try. You'll need:

yogurt maker
milk (cow, goat, or soy)
candy or yogurt thermometer (you might get one w/your yogurt maker)
yogurt culture

I got my yogurt maker on eBay for about $12 It is made by Salton but there are a few other brands that are also great. I use the Yogourmet starter which I buy at Wholefoods for about $4/box (one box makes approx 1.5 gallons of yogurt) The process involves heating milk until just boiling, cooling it to a certain temp and then adding the yogurt starter/culture. Add flavor, sweetener, etc and transfer to a maker. Seemingly intimidating, but in reality not hard at all.

Length of time that you incubate your yogurt in order for the cultures to grow will depend on your yogurt maker, and the volume of yogurt you make. I make vanilla every time and then I can through in granola or blueberries or whatever. My yogurt has milk, cultures, sugar, vanilla extract and that's it. It cheaper for me than buying the same amount pre-made from the store, I can always have it ready and in my fridge and my family loves it.

My eyes, I can't see!

2008-07-05T12:35:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is entry to create bling. While not usually my thing, please realize that there is room for creative change in this project while still making this very project. I used to knit a sweater for every baby born in my family (like nieces and nephews) and then every baby born amongst my group of friends/acquaintances....well let's just say that there must be something in the water, either that or I got new friends because all of a sudden there were too many babies and not enough knitting time. I started to make pacifier clips which were cheaper and A LOT faster.

You'll need: Crimp tubes (not beads), fox tail or tiger tail (this kind of wire is crucial. don't get normal beading wire!), needle nose pliers, 11/10 seed clear beads, misc spacers and larger beads. a badge clip, jump rings (these look like mini key rings where you have to feed things around the ring to get them on). Click on the pic below to make it big!

Let me know if you have any questions.