And Now Snow!

Conclusion: This day looks more like Idaho than Oklahoma!

Ice Storm

If you've never seen an ice storm before, they really are awesome. We have about 1.5-2 centimeters of ice creating a dangerous and beautiful crystaline cocoon over everything: roads, trees, houses, cars, trees, etc... It is lovely, but scary, too. As the ice builds, the weight of it builds, too. The trees start to literally shatter under the weight, bringing down power lines, falling through rooftops, blocking the already icy roads, and all sorts of mayhem. Beautiful, but I think we'll stay home today. Given our lack of a 4WD vehicle, it's not really a choice.

Read Me A Story

TJ loves books. Lately, he wants me to read to him ALL THE TIME. I swear that we read his favorite book at least 15 times every day. The other morning as Rob was getting ready for work, TJ really wanted to read a book together. They sat down for a quick story, but right as they were about to start, TJ would look across the room, see one of his stuffed animals, and ask for it. This went on until there was quite a crew, all sitting in Rob's lap waiting for a story. Aren't my two boys cute?

Awesome Apple Cake

This is my favorite new recipe. It's from Marcus Samuelsson; if you've never heard of him, it's time you did. He's fabulous, and his cookbooks are tasty and lovely. I love his attitude towards American food; we are a land of more than just cheeseburgers and greasy pizza; we are the country that embraces all food ethnicity's and is willing to try it all. His recipes blend cultures the way the I-95 mix-master blends traffic. So, try this one out this weekend.

12 Servings (ha ha ha)

2 Tbsp plain bread crumbs
1/2 c white sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
2 granny smith apples
1 tsp cinnamon
4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) butter
1 egg
1 1/4 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
2/3 c half-and-half (I usually have whole milk in the fridge, and just use it)
2 tsp powdered sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour a 9" springform pan (I use a bundt pan, and so usually omit the bread crumbs), and coat with the bread crumbs.
Toss together the white and brown sugar, and set aside.
Core the apples (leaving peels on), then slice one into 16 wedges. Toss the apple wedges with 1/3 c of the mixed sugars and 1 tsp cinnamon.
Roughly dice the other apple.
Mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 mins. Add the egg, mixing until combined. Reduce speed and add the flour and baking powder. Slowly add the half-and-half. Fold the diced apple into the batter (I usually add 1 tsp almond extract and 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp cloves to the batter as well). Pour batter into prepared pan. Arrange the coated apple wedges in a fan on top of the batter. Bake for 35-40 minutes until center is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Release from pan, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and delve in.

Visitors, 2Day Dress, and TJ's Hat

We are still keeping busy. After all of our Christmas company left, my brothers, Matt and Nathan, came for a visit. One of these days, I'm going to need to do some catch-up of all this. I read so many good year-end or year-beginning summaries/goal lists, and really did mean to do my own. Hmmm.
But to assuage any guilt I may feel, here's a cute picture of my little boy:
I am a dork, and did not get a picture of Nathan and TJ, but here is one of Matt and TJ:
I've been wanting a knit dress that I can throw on in a hurry; with the turning of the year, we now have the 8:30AM church block (this is mostly an awesome good thing, as we are home in time for TJ's nap). So here is Butterick 4914:

I loved how easy this dress was to make. The original pattern has a really low neckline, but it was easy to make it about 2inches higher by cutting the surplice panels higher on the inner edge, and then shirring the shoulder seam to hide the excess fabric. I hate having to wear camis underneath things (really, ANOTHER layer?!), so the decision to raise the neckline was a no-brainer. But that's the only alteration I needed. The fabric is from Hancock's clearance table at 2.99/yd, and I don't love the print, but since it was my first time sewing with a matte jersey, I didn't want to commit much $$. I also loved how FAST this dress was. During one of TJ's naps, I got everything done except hemming the skirt and setting in the sleeves. So really, it's almost a one-day-dress (and if your kid naps longer than mine, it for sure is). Added bonus: it's machine washable, so TJ can smear cheese all over me to his hearts content.

TJ's hat, off the needles and blocked:

I'm really happy with how this hat turned out. I learned a ton (2 different cabling styles, a bunch of new decreases, Russian joins, etc), and am pleased as punch that I was able to figure it all out. It's definitely the most complex piece I've made yet.

Knitting

I could go on and on about knitting. Growing up, I had an aunt who would knit. I always thought it was the coolest thing, and wished that I knew how, too. For some reason, though, I never asked her to show me how; I was under the impression that it was much too hard. Hmm.

While living in Little Rock, I was friends with a lady who was a knitter. One day I asked her to teach me, and she spent an evening showing me the two basic stitches most commonly used, the knit and the purl. She also told me about a great website, www.knittinghelp.com
Here you can learn almost anything you need to know about knitting. One of the things I've most wanted to learn to do is Aran cabling. I started this hat for TJ about a week ago. I used this ugly color of yarn, because, honestly, I didn't think I'd be able to make this hat work out on the first try, and I didn't want to "waste" or damage one of my good yarns. Now I'm almost done with it, and thrilled about everything except the color. Rats. Guess I'll just have to make another one...

Remember the beautiful mittens that Bella wore in Twilight? Really, you didn't even notice them? They were the best part of the movie! Well, I really wanted a pair. A quick download of the pattern, and a week later: Ta Dah!

And here is the sweater I made for my friend's little boy. I liked how it turned out so well, now TJ has to have one. I have one in progress on the needles.

See, isn't knitting just the coolest? I told you I could go on and on... My poor husband.