We've known Justin for several years from the theatre department at the university, but we'd never really spent a lot of time with just him. Doing this photo session with him was so much fun!
One of the first things we made in our brand new Kichenaid was shortcakes to eat with mixed berries and homemade whipped cream. It was absolutely delicious, and made even better by the fact that it was something like 10pm and was totally spur of the moment. We slightly modified this recipe from Have Recipes - Will Cook. Yum!
Shortcakes
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 Tablespoons light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons butter, cut in small pieces and chilled, plus 2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1. Preheat the oven to 375. Lightly spray or grease a cookie sheet.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together and then add the chilled butter and combine until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
3. Whisk the egg and sour cream together and add into the flour mixture. Stir with a spatula until clumps form, and then combine with your hands until everything comes together and no loose flour remains.
4. Divide into six dough balls and place on the cookie sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle granulated sugar on top.
5. Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes.
For the toppings, combine 4-5 cups fresh or thawed frozen berries (we used sliced fresh strawberries with thawed frozen blueberries, blackberries and raspberries) with two tablespoons sugar. To make whipped cream, combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon confectioner's sugar. Beat with an electric handmixer (or with your hand, if you are truly amazing- I certainly can't do it!) until peaks form. Don't overbeat. Use a chilled bowl and chilled beaters for the best whipped cream.
Cut the biscuits in half and layer berries and whipped cream, then add the top of the biscuit. Amazingly delicious!
Shortcakes
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 Tablespoons light brown sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons butter, cut in small pieces and chilled, plus 2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 large egg
½ cup sour cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1. Preheat the oven to 375. Lightly spray or grease a cookie sheet.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together and then add the chilled butter and combine until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
3. Whisk the egg and sour cream together and add into the flour mixture. Stir with a spatula until clumps form, and then combine with your hands until everything comes together and no loose flour remains.
4. Divide into six dough balls and place on the cookie sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle granulated sugar on top.
5. Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes.
For the toppings, combine 4-5 cups fresh or thawed frozen berries (we used sliced fresh strawberries with thawed frozen blueberries, blackberries and raspberries) with two tablespoons sugar. To make whipped cream, combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon confectioner's sugar. Beat with an electric handmixer (or with your hand, if you are truly amazing- I certainly can't do it!) until peaks form. Don't overbeat. Use a chilled bowl and chilled beaters for the best whipped cream.
Cut the biscuits in half and layer berries and whipped cream, then add the top of the biscuit. Amazingly delicious!
Our music recommendations for the week: 1. Fun. ft. Janelle Monáe- We Are Young
2. The Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts
3. Morgan Page ft. Tegan and Sara - Bodywork
2. The Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts
3. Morgan Page ft. Tegan and Sara - Bodywork
Lately, there have been lots of small people (or soon-to-be small people) in our life. Our two-doors-down neighbor has an adorable little two-year-old; Lindi's half brother was born a nearly a year and a half ago and her cousin had a baby the same month. Our friend (and roommate) Kim is pregnant, as is Lindi's sister, and Lindi's aunt had a little baby girl month ago. So did our best friend Phyllis's little sister. So many babies!
Lindi's little brother, Michael, came to stay with us overnight one night last week while Lindi's dad went out of town. He's fifteen months old, and most of the time is rather an angel. He has the softest hair, and he is just starting to walk (a tiny bit) and say nearly-words. The only time he was unhappy was when we tried to put him to sleep in his crib- he did NOT want to sleep alone. He cried for nearly an hour, and we kept hoping he would quiet himself and fall asleep, but he never did. Eventually, Lindi took him upstairs with us and he slept between us all night.
I can't wait to have children, but honestly? The idea of it feels like what I would imagine flying would feel like: exciting and terrifying all at once. I haven't had very many babies, or small children, in my life. I babysat some when I was younger- but all the children I babysat were between the ages of three and ten. No brand new tiny people. I didn't grow up with extended family nearby, so I didn't learn how to change diapers on my younger first and second cousins. My little sister is only two years younger than me, and I don't have any neices or nephews. So, babies are frankly a little scary to me. I am completely confident that I will get the hang of it rather quickly when the time comes, but for now, I panic a little when a baby I'm holding starts to cry.
Lindi, on the other hand, is a whiz. She an oldest sibling and the oldest cousin in her very tight-knit extended family; she helped a friend through pregnancy and the first two years of the baby's life a few years ago; she worked with five year olds and then three year olds at two different nurseries and 18-month-olds, briefly, at a third. She knows a thousand tricks for making little ones stop crying, or laugh, or forget that they fell down and bumped their elbow. She's amazing.
So, sometimes I am terrified of what it will be like to have a child. But I am so amazed that I will get to do that with such an amazing person by my side.
The night that Michael stayed with us, he fell asleep within about thirty seconds of being put to bed between us. He stirred a little bit, but slept surprisingly soundly for the whole night. At six the next morning I got up to get ready for work, and I left Lindi and Michael asleep in the bed. I had just turned off my closet light and turned around to leave the room when I saw the two of them, both on their backs, with their arms sprawled across the bed in exactly the same position, both breathing deeply. I just stood there, watching them sleep for a long moment-- the most indescribably tender feeling fluttering in my chest.
Lindi's little brother, Michael, came to stay with us overnight one night last week while Lindi's dad went out of town. He's fifteen months old, and most of the time is rather an angel. He has the softest hair, and he is just starting to walk (a tiny bit) and say nearly-words. The only time he was unhappy was when we tried to put him to sleep in his crib- he did NOT want to sleep alone. He cried for nearly an hour, and we kept hoping he would quiet himself and fall asleep, but he never did. Eventually, Lindi took him upstairs with us and he slept between us all night.
 |
| Michael at one year old. |
I can't wait to have children, but honestly? The idea of it feels like what I would imagine flying would feel like: exciting and terrifying all at once. I haven't had very many babies, or small children, in my life. I babysat some when I was younger- but all the children I babysat were between the ages of three and ten. No brand new tiny people. I didn't grow up with extended family nearby, so I didn't learn how to change diapers on my younger first and second cousins. My little sister is only two years younger than me, and I don't have any neices or nephews. So, babies are frankly a little scary to me. I am completely confident that I will get the hang of it rather quickly when the time comes, but for now, I panic a little when a baby I'm holding starts to cry.
Lindi, on the other hand, is a whiz. She an oldest sibling and the oldest cousin in her very tight-knit extended family; she helped a friend through pregnancy and the first two years of the baby's life a few years ago; she worked with five year olds and then three year olds at two different nurseries and 18-month-olds, briefly, at a third. She knows a thousand tricks for making little ones stop crying, or laugh, or forget that they fell down and bumped their elbow. She's amazing.
So, sometimes I am terrified of what it will be like to have a child. But I am so amazed that I will get to do that with such an amazing person by my side.
The night that Michael stayed with us, he fell asleep within about thirty seconds of being put to bed between us. He stirred a little bit, but slept surprisingly soundly for the whole night. At six the next morning I got up to get ready for work, and I left Lindi and Michael asleep in the bed. I had just turned off my closet light and turned around to leave the room when I saw the two of them, both on their backs, with their arms sprawled across the bed in exactly the same position, both breathing deeply. I just stood there, watching them sleep for a long moment-- the most indescribably tender feeling fluttering in my chest.
Oh my goodness. I can't even say how much I love these. I'm a sucker for all the pretty Pantone-inspired things out there, after all the design work I did in college. So cute! These are Pantone dessert tarts by French art director Emilie Guelpa for the food mag Fricote, via My Modern Met.
Alyssa Haven was just one of the sweetest, cutest babies ever. What a fun shoot! (There are photos in a tutu with a giant fuzzy elephant to come-- just you wait.)
Our music recommendations for the week: 1. The xx - Stars
1. Jenny Owen Youngs - Hot in Herre
3. Angus & Julia Stone - The Devil's Tears
Our friends Michelle and Leah recently went up to Colorado for the Women of the World Poetry Slam, and they got into car trouble partway there in Kansas. I read something Leah wrote this morning about it, and about how they were astounded by the generosity and kindness of strangers that helped them along the way. (A man they had never met before GAVE THEM THE KEYS TO HIS TRUCK so they could get to the competition in time. In another state. And they totally got there.)
It reminded me of a trip I took when I was younger, and how I experienced something similar: strangers helping strangers, without asking for or expecting anything in return. (This post is adapted from a message I wrote to Leah and Michelle, but since I intended on writing about this here eventually, I thought now would be an excellent time.)
 |
| My friends Martha and Katherine in Wales- I believe in Chepstow |
We got on our first train and halfway to Cardiff without any problems, but then our train stopped at a station... and didn't start again. Apparently the conductor had gotten sick. So we sat at a station for something like 45 mintues, and finally, they found someone new and we got going again. We got to Cardiff, changed trains and got to Swansea, and found out we had missed our third train-- one of only two trains that went to Llangadog per day. We were stuck in the train station, talking to the station manager and trying to figure out what to do. Finally they told us they would pay for a taxi to take us to Llangadog, which was only about 40 miles north of where we were. At this point, it was getting on in the evening, and we just wanted to get to where we were going, so we piled into the taxi and off we went.
The taxi driver was a rather jokey older gentleman, and we got to Llangadog safe and sound... only to discover the Llangadog was TINY (seriously, with maybe a total population of 500 people, and most of those spread out throughout the countryside) and our hostel was.... seven miles further on the other side of town. Our taxi driver had only been contracted to take us to the train station in Llangadog and not anywhere else. We considered trying to walk to the hostel, but it was starting to get dark, and so we asked the driver if we paid him out of our own pockets if he could take us the rest of the way. He did, and it was EXPENSIVE, but I don't know how we could have found the hostel otherwise, even with directions- it was in the middle of nowhere, and there were no street signs.
Apparently we had accidentally picked the absolute most remote hostel in ALL OF THE UNITED KINGDOM. On accident. Seriously. Later I looked it up and it was actually billed as 'the most secluded hostel the U.K.'
We hadn't brought any food or anything except for some snacks, because we had assumed the hostel would be IN Llangadog, where there was a store and a pub. So, we asked the hostel caretaker, Marie, if she could tell us where we could get dinner, and she said there was a pub about two miles away that wasn't a bad walk, and she gave us directions and off we went. We got there and found out that they stopped serving dinner at 9... and it was 9:10.
So we walked back to the hostel.
When we got there, Marie asked us how dinner was, and we explained that we'd been out of luck. We were in the main living area of the hostel with her, talking about it, and the other guests were there as well-- two couples and a fifth person. The hostel had a full kitchen, and everyone else had brought food to prepare themselves during the stay.
Everyone was so kind. When they found out we hadn't been able to get anything for dinner, one couple gave us half a pound of pasta, another gave us some butter and fruit, and Marie and the other guest gave us little odds and ends of food as well, and we were able to have a pretty decent dinner out of it.
We spent the next day walking and exploring the countryside, ate both of our meals at the pub (making sure that we were there before 9!!) and spent a second night at the hostel.
On Sunday morning our plan was to get up early and walk to the train station, but Marie graciously offered to drive us. We got to the train station (which was so small, it actually didn't even have a station-- just a platform and a track) and we thanked her effusively for everything she'd done to help us. She brushed it off, and said, 'I have a teenaged daughter, and if she ever needed help, I just hope that someone would help her.'
So we said goodbye, got on the train and left. Our plan was to stop and see Tintern Abbey on the way back to London (all three of us were English majors, whoo!) We got to Swansea, then to Cardiff, all without any problems, and got on a train to Chepstow (which is south of Tintern Abbey and the closest station.) In Chepstow, we asked around for directions to the bus, which was on the other side of town but not too long of a walk. We took a bus to Tintern, made sure we had a timetable of when the bus would be coming by again so we could get back in time for our train, and explored the ruins. They were spectacular.
We had to be back in Chepstow to catch our train to London-- we had tickets on the last train of the day, naturally-- by 5:30, so we planned to take the 4:00 bus (it was supposed to come by the abbey every 20 minutes) and then walk around Chepstow for a little while to get something to eat and such.
So a few minutes before 4:00, we walked back out to the main road to the bus stop. And waited. And waited. And waited some more. By 4:30 (when two buses should have come already) we were worried. By 5:00 we were seriously freaking out. And no buses ever came. It was only 6 or 7 miles back to Chepstow, but there was no way for us to make it back in time for our train, and we had class the next morning (not to mention no place to stay that night.) So... we tried to hitchhike. It wasn't any of our favorite idea, but we were pretty desperate, it was only a short distance and there were three of us, so we hoped it would be relatively safe.
Except... guess what is ilegal in Wales? Yeah. Hitchhiking.
No cars stopped for us, and we couldn't figure out why and were getting more and more worried... and then a police car stopped. And the policeman informed us that what we were doing was against the law. We explained the situation, and he said he could give us a ride back to the train station, but only if we promised not to try to hitchhike in Wales again. (Believe me, we didn't.) So we rode in the back of a Welsh police car back to the train station, got some funny looks as the three of us and our backpacks sprinted to our platform, got on the train and made it back to London.
Whew. It was an adventure. And we would have had a terrible, terrible time if it wasn't for a few really wonderful, caring strangers. Whenever I feel sort of depressed about the horrible things people do to other people, I think about that weekend in Wales and remember that there are so many wonderful people in the world as well.
So...... guess what we got?
A KITCHENAID. Okay, first of all, we bake so much that it's a little weird that we didn't have one already- especially since Lindi has wanted one since about the time she learned how to walk. We were holding out until we could get one on sale, though. This came around at a perfect time-- our anniversary is in a few weeks.
And because I'm a nerd, I have to talk about how I love sales. And how on sale this was. This is a 5-quart Artisan mixer in buttercup (which is such a lovely color) which is normally $349.99 plus $20 shipping to buy on Amazon. Recently, though, a few of the colors were on sale for $199.99 with free shipping, with one $30 rebate and another $12 rebate. Then, I took a survery somewhere online last month that gave me a $5 Amazon gift card, PLUS I had $35 in 'cash-back' dollars on my credit card. So.... instead of $369.99 (including shipping), we got our beautiful yellow Kitchenaid for.... $117.99. I think we'll call that good.
I bought it without telling Lindi and was intending to wait until it came in the mail so she could open it and have it be a surprise, but I totally couldn't hold out that long. When I showed her the picture of it online and told her it would be on our front step in a few days, her face lit up. It was awesome.
If you'll excuse me now, I have to go bake All The Things.
A KITCHENAID. Okay, first of all, we bake so much that it's a little weird that we didn't have one already- especially since Lindi has wanted one since about the time she learned how to walk. We were holding out until we could get one on sale, though. This came around at a perfect time-- our anniversary is in a few weeks.
And because I'm a nerd, I have to talk about how I love sales. And how on sale this was. This is a 5-quart Artisan mixer in buttercup (which is such a lovely color) which is normally $349.99 plus $20 shipping to buy on Amazon. Recently, though, a few of the colors were on sale for $199.99 with free shipping, with one $30 rebate and another $12 rebate. Then, I took a survery somewhere online last month that gave me a $5 Amazon gift card, PLUS I had $35 in 'cash-back' dollars on my credit card. So.... instead of $369.99 (including shipping), we got our beautiful yellow Kitchenaid for.... $117.99. I think we'll call that good.
I bought it without telling Lindi and was intending to wait until it came in the mail so she could open it and have it be a surprise, but I totally couldn't hold out that long. When I showed her the picture of it online and told her it would be on our front step in a few days, her face lit up. It was awesome.
If you'll excuse me now, I have to go bake All The Things.
Our music recommendations for the week: 1. Laura Marling - New Romantic
2. Josh Pyke - Middle of the Hill
3. Drapht - Rapunzel
2. Josh Pyke - Middle of the Hill
3. Drapht - Rapunzel
I'm feeling a tad bit under the weather today, and so all three of these look absolutely amazing. Mmm, fresh juice. From chantelle grady via Oh the lovely things.
The weather this week has been phenomenal. It makes me want to go outside and sit in the sun for as long as possible- which I actually did yesterday during my lunch break. The downside to gorgeous weather in the winter in this part of the country, though, is that sometimes that weather switch from cold to nice brings tornadoes.
The spring- and right now, early winter- is prime tornado season. We always have at least a few tornado warnings every year. Last May, a tornado ripped through Joplin, Missouri and destroyed a good chunk of the city. We just had a warning last week, and although nothing touched down in Fayetteville, a tornado ripped up part of Branson, Missouri.
Lindi is a storm buff. She's lived through tornadoes, and she's ultra-prepared and vigilant when we might have a bad one. She subscribes to three different mobile weather update services and watches the weather like a hawk when we know it might get bad. And every time the weather service updates a tornado watch to a warning, we cram into our downstairs bathroom because it is the safest place in our house. It is an interior room by a firewall, and since we don't have a basement or cellar or actual storm shelter, that's pretty good.
The downside? Our downstairs bathroom is actually a powder room, and the entire space is MAYBE 5'x3'- and that's including the sink space. And now that we have a lovely roommate with an adorable baby bump, we got to squeeze all three of us (and baby!) plus our two cats into the teensy space. Luckily the warning last week wasn't a very long one and we didn't have to be crammed in there for very long.
The warning got me thinking about disaster preparedness, and how it worries me that many people perhaps don't think about what they might need in case of emergency. I remember in 2009 when a massive ice storm hit our part of the country, essentially shutting the region down for a week and leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power for days at best and three weeks at worst. When we went to Walmart to pick something up before the storm was about to hit, the shelves were picked clean of canned food, flashlights, batteries, water and other necessities. That was all well and good for the people who got there first, but what about the others?
We have an emergency kit under our bed in a large bin that we put together during last year's tornado season. We call it our 'zombie box' (you know, in case of the zombie apocalypse!) but it would certainly work for a flood, tornado, ice storm, etc. as well. ;) I think this is something that everyone should have; the FEMA website has a whole section about what you should have to be prepared for a natural disaster. It's quite helpful. Here is what we have in ours:
-3 gallons of water per person (a three day supply)
-Enough food for three days for each of us (primarily canned and preserved, and things that could be eaten without electricity/heat in an emergency: canned fruit, soup, beans, etc.; packets of peanut butter, beef jerky, protein bars and nuts; plus some additional foods that we could cook if we were stuck in our house but were lucky enough to have electricity and some comfort foods like chocolate and gum.)
-A can opener- which is really important, since all that canned food would be rather unhelpful if you couldn't eat it.
-Flashilights and extra batteries (or, even better, crank-powered flashlights that don't need batteries)
-A weather radio (and batteries, if needed)
-Matches and candles
-Hand wipes in case we lost our water supply
-Garbage bags and ziplock bags
-A first aid kit. You can buy a pre-made kit, but we built our own. We included bandaids, antibiotic ointment, hydrocortisone cream, antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer, gauze, medical tape, rubbing alcohol, tweezers, scissors, an ace bandage, tylenol and ibuprofen and an instant cold pack. This includes the most basic supplies-- there are certainly more I would add to make this more comprehensive.
-Extra contacts and contact solution for Lindi
-A small bag of food for the cats
We put this in a closed bin so if we need to, we can pull it out from under the bed and carry it downstairs or put it in the car. Obviously, if we were in our house, we would have additional canned food and such in our pantry, but this is something we can grab and leave with if we need to. It's also important to look through your kit periodically and make sure nothing is expired or needs replacing.
Do you have an emergency kit?
The spring- and right now, early winter- is prime tornado season. We always have at least a few tornado warnings every year. Last May, a tornado ripped through Joplin, Missouri and destroyed a good chunk of the city. We just had a warning last week, and although nothing touched down in Fayetteville, a tornado ripped up part of Branson, Missouri.
Lindi is a storm buff. She's lived through tornadoes, and she's ultra-prepared and vigilant when we might have a bad one. She subscribes to three different mobile weather update services and watches the weather like a hawk when we know it might get bad. And every time the weather service updates a tornado watch to a warning, we cram into our downstairs bathroom because it is the safest place in our house. It is an interior room by a firewall, and since we don't have a basement or cellar or actual storm shelter, that's pretty good.
The downside? Our downstairs bathroom is actually a powder room, and the entire space is MAYBE 5'x3'- and that's including the sink space. And now that we have a lovely roommate with an adorable baby bump, we got to squeeze all three of us (and baby!) plus our two cats into the teensy space. Luckily the warning last week wasn't a very long one and we didn't have to be crammed in there for very long.
The warning got me thinking about disaster preparedness, and how it worries me that many people perhaps don't think about what they might need in case of emergency. I remember in 2009 when a massive ice storm hit our part of the country, essentially shutting the region down for a week and leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power for days at best and three weeks at worst. When we went to Walmart to pick something up before the storm was about to hit, the shelves were picked clean of canned food, flashlights, batteries, water and other necessities. That was all well and good for the people who got there first, but what about the others?
We have an emergency kit under our bed in a large bin that we put together during last year's tornado season. We call it our 'zombie box' (you know, in case of the zombie apocalypse!) but it would certainly work for a flood, tornado, ice storm, etc. as well. ;) I think this is something that everyone should have; the FEMA website has a whole section about what you should have to be prepared for a natural disaster. It's quite helpful. Here is what we have in ours:
-3 gallons of water per person (a three day supply)
-Enough food for three days for each of us (primarily canned and preserved, and things that could be eaten without electricity/heat in an emergency: canned fruit, soup, beans, etc.; packets of peanut butter, beef jerky, protein bars and nuts; plus some additional foods that we could cook if we were stuck in our house but were lucky enough to have electricity and some comfort foods like chocolate and gum.)
-A can opener- which is really important, since all that canned food would be rather unhelpful if you couldn't eat it.
-Flashilights and extra batteries (or, even better, crank-powered flashlights that don't need batteries)
-A weather radio (and batteries, if needed)
-Matches and candles
-Hand wipes in case we lost our water supply
-Garbage bags and ziplock bags
-A first aid kit. You can buy a pre-made kit, but we built our own. We included bandaids, antibiotic ointment, hydrocortisone cream, antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer, gauze, medical tape, rubbing alcohol, tweezers, scissors, an ace bandage, tylenol and ibuprofen and an instant cold pack. This includes the most basic supplies-- there are certainly more I would add to make this more comprehensive.
-Extra contacts and contact solution for Lindi
-A small bag of food for the cats
We put this in a closed bin so if we need to, we can pull it out from under the bed and carry it downstairs or put it in the car. Obviously, if we were in our house, we would have additional canned food and such in our pantry, but this is something we can grab and leave with if we need to. It's also important to look through your kit periodically and make sure nothing is expired or needs replacing.
Do you have an emergency kit?
Our music recommendations for the week: 1. The Tease - Fighter Pilot
2. Pearl and the Puppets - Because I do
3. The Dykeenies - Sounds of the City
2. Pearl and the Puppets - Because I do
3. The Dykeenies - Sounds of the City
Here's one of Gracie tearing it up on the dance floor last weekend. I swear, this was one of the most energetic set of reception guests- they danced the night away!
I just thought these giant paper flowers were so pretty. I found them on green wedding shoes via papernstich. The weather has been so nice the last two days that it makes me want to do a whimsical outdoor photoshoot with giant flowers like these!
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