Alexis

Alexis is leaving our home today and going to a new family. She was a wonderful dog and it's very sad to see her go. I think she will be happy with her new family though and I know she'll make them happy. Unless she digs up one of their trees 5 times, then they might get a little erked.

Project 21 of many. . .

Something so simple should not have taken this long. I guess that the new duration of my projects is a good indicator that I am indeed 39 and 3/4 weeks pregnant. Something tells me that projects are only going to take longer from here on out.

Waiting on baby

Our little one is due to enter the world in exactly one week. Despite gaining about 35 lbs and feeling something move around inside of me, I really do not feel pregnant. I cannot grasp the idea that in no more than 3 weeks I will be holding a precious little baby in my arms. It's fantastic. It's amazing. It's mostly unreal.

I know that genetically this baby belongs to Kyle and I. That we made it. I do not feel like that. I feel like I've just been blessed to bring someone into the world that was thought up in eternity. Someone created for eternity, for Someone who has loved and will continue to love for eternity. And though my body has essentially built this child, I feel like I've had less to do with it than I do when I tailor something. I know how to tailor a coat. In fact, given the right resources I could make you a coat all the way from the primary source. And when I was done with it, it would be void and without life (but not without form ;) ). I cannot tell you how I made this baby. Even if I were an expert on the matter of baby formation, there would still be things that I could not explain. Like amniotic fluid - nobody even knows where that stuff comes from.

I feel blessed. So many people have helped to make this baby possible, from words of encouragement to such generosity that I cannot even understand it. These things may not have directly "made" the baby possible, but have been a tremendous blessing and have really driven home the idea that God is always going to take care of us. All of this creates inexpressible joy, and I pray that I will remember this even in the worst of times.

. . . like, when I'm trying to push a baby out. :/ Until then, everything is ready waiting. The nursery is completed. The car seat is installed. The birthing pool is in the car. I even tried to set up my first appointment at the pediatricians today - they said I had to have a baby first. Go figure.


The closet. Complete with dresser/changing table, the pony that hung in Kyle's room when he was a baby, and a nice supply of diaper bags. . .


. . . and a cork wall with notes from friends and family.

Rocking chair and toy chest that Grandma Jackie refinished for us.

Crib with stuffed animals from friends and a cross-stitched blanket from Great Grandma LaVon.

Lots of great books that I cannot wait to read through over and over again.

Book that we wrote for the baby. I'm really excited about this one. Hopefully it will be a favorite.




Kyle thinks that this page is going to embarrass the baby. I say "bring it on!"


If you want to read the rest of the book, you'll just have to come visit us.

Bramble Tart with Cassis Cream

Kir. I love it. I wish I could drink it every night. Unfortunately, I have not been able to have one for about 8 months now. What this has done is left me with a bottle of creme de cassis in my refrigerator, that I've just been dying to use.
Yesterday afternoon I stumbled upon a recipe for a bramble tart with cassis cream and decided that this little bit wouldn't hurt me. This tart was so easy to make and it turned out deliciously! The recipe serves six, but I think it's more suited to 4 . . . or 1.

Pastry
2 2/3 c all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 sticks unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
5 tsp semolina (which I couldn't find, so I used 1 T whole wheat flour)
1 egg white

Filling
1 lb fresh blackberries (or you could use a mixture of berries. . .strawberries, raspberries. Peaches would be good)
6 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp creme de cassis
1 tbsp flour

Cassis Cream
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp creme de cassis
powdered sugar - I have no idea how much I used, the bag was almost empty, so I just dumped it in the blender.


Cut butter into flour and salt. Once it looks like bread crumbs, add the sugar and then enough cold water to form a dough. Chill for 30 minutes

Mix blackberries with 4 tbsp sugar and creme de cassis and flour

Preheat over to 400, place mixing bowl in freezer

Roll out the pastry into a large circle, leave the edges ragged. Sprinkle dough with flour. Pill the fruit into the center of the pastry so that there is a 2 1/2" margin around the edges. Fold the edges of the pastry to overlap and enclose the edges of the fruit. Close any gaps that you see in the pastry. Brush pastry with egg white and sprinkle the remaining sugar onto the pastry and berries. Bake for 25 minutes

In chilled bowl, whip cream until it begins to thicken, then add creme de cassis and powdered sugar until peaks are formed in the cream.

Serve tart hot with the Cassis Cream. It's also good chilled the next day :)

∞ The Adrian Carryall ∞

Just finished this diaper bag. Everything about it turned out the way I wanted. I love it when projects go this way. . . they seem few and far between lately.





Buy it here. . .