Pretty in Pink

Pretty

petulant

baby

 is persuaded

to look pleasant

by patient

persuasion.

Thanksgiving Remembered

We probably have many things to be thankful for this year, but the main focus has definitely been on Baby H! We were really sad not to be able to celebrate with family back East, but we are starting to feel more settled here- we even had a tradition for Thanksgiving! We spent the day with the same friends we did last year, plus their family, with the addition of another family we know.

As Thanksgiving approached, I was dreading the reliving of my Thanksgiving mistake last year- the pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie is easy to make, and I am a pretty adventurous cook. Last year I made two. I even used the pre-made crusts, so I figured it was pretty foolproof. I planned to serve one as dessert to some guests the day before Thanksgiving and bring the other to Thanksgiving dinner. However, we discovered as we had dessert with our guests, I had forgotten the sugar! This, apparently, is what happens when you talk on the phone while you make dessert, even one as easy as pie. We also discovered that in Tiny Town there is no place to buy eggs after dinner the day before Thanksgiving so you can re-make your pumpkin pie the next day. So, I made a (not very good) caramel sauce to take with the pie and sweeten it up. It turns out there was plenty of dessert, no one ate the pie, and life moved on.

I figured when we ended up spending Thanksgiving with the same group this year I might be relieved of all cooking duties. However, it turns out they remembered something I had totally forgotten- I showed up last year and made the gravy from the pan drippings. In fact, several people commented, upon hearing that E and I would return this year, "Oh good! R can make the gravy again!" Who knew?! So, I brought stuffing this year, and made the gravy. To tell you the truth, it wasn't my most resounding cooking success- but there was lots of it, which is important when there are 12 adults and too many kids to count. And, they all seemed happy that at least they didn't have to make it!

Selective memory. Something to be thankful for, indeed.

Saturday

I spent what felt like the whole day cooking. I'm pretty sure E feels like he spent the whole day doing dishes. Making good food from scratch, with no dishwasher, sometimes feels like a full time job. I did use canned beans, though, and nothing was bought with a coupon. We had chicken & onion "pizza" for lunch, and chili and salad for dinner, with garbanzo bean chocolate cake for dessert. I've been trying to avoid buying extra things (at the grocery store that is ACROSS THE STREET) and just make do with what we have- so I tried the flax seed substitute for an egg. And bitter chocolate squares for bittersweet chocolate chips. I can't tell you how it turned out, though, since I never had garbanzo bean chocolate cake before. It was all worth it to host our (gluten avoiding) friends for dinner- we don't host as much as we used to, living out here in Tiny Town, and we miss it.

Baby H spent a good part of the day napping or watching us cook- she looked pretty surprised at the food processor, though. She couldn't sleep while the party was going on- she wasn't really crying, but kept shouting from her cradle. I think she wanted to join in the conversation- she seemed content when I brought her out to suck her pacifier in her swaddle. Having her arms contained and a pacifier in her mouth is her favorite way to observe the party when she's tired. I wear her in the wrap a lot, too, especially when we're out. I can't believe she's three months old, today! How could she have gone from this:

to this:

in just three months?

Moving into a season of children has been fun & hard- we stay home a lot more, which isn't all bad. It's great for the budget. It's hard to feel like we can't stay up late with friends, talking- our guests had a 1 year old, and we all managed the controlled chaos until irreversible meltdowns were pending. But they came at five, so we got a chance to chat with them- new friends in a similar life circumstance. Turns out she and I share a secret blog-reading habit! So funny.

Tomorrow our church moves to it's new, farther (for us), closer (for everyone else) location. And we have to stop by the store (or two) because I refuse to shop with Baby H alone again before Thanksgiving. I still haven't recovered from the screaming incident last time. But I'm sure I will. After the crazed mobs are done shopping for the holiday of food.

Some recent events

I started reading The Joy Luck Club, but E threw it in the recycling because it made me cry. So, I'm still looking for something to read.

Baby H can put herself to sleep! Except she usually likes to suck her pacifier, and it falls out if she yawns. Pretty funny- and I really don't mind getting up every five or ten minutes to put it back in if it means eating dinner in relative peace. I'm still hoping she finds her thumb- she currently is convinced that she can fit her whole hand in her mouth if she tries hard enough. If her hand gets out of her swaddle, she won't sleep because she's trying so hard.

Speaking of the above accomplishment, Baby H has been a model baby lately. Except for the extreme crying fit she had in the car when we were 30 minutes from anywhere. I eventually stuck her back in her car seat, her screaming her little head off, and figured if she didn't stop I'd just drive down to the doctor's. She did, though. Sheesh.

I went to the gym after the baby was sleeping. It was awesome. It made me so hungry I ate three pieces of pumpkin bread, though.

Turns our Baby H (and I) had thrush. We're feeling better, and she doesn't scream when she takes her medicine any more. She still spits it out, but I'm just as happy as long is it swishes around in there for a second.

It's cold and dark here the past few days. Hello, winter! At least we found our slippers.

E and I are planning our first sans-baby date. We're hoping to see HP7!!!! That's what lures me away from my baby- Harry Potter.