Lemons to Lemonade...

If you've ever wanted to feel like a domestic goddess then I've found the perfect recipe...

Picture this:

Sitting in your tidy kitchen, on a comfortable chair, in a puddle of sunlight reading a great book while waiting for fluffy buttermilk pancakes on the griddle to be ready to flip at the leisurely hour of 9:45am.

Granted - at 32 weeks pregnant I probably won't get too many more mornings like this - which is why I popped out of bed with a 'carpe diem' attitude this morning.

Ok - well that and also - I really wanted pancakes...

Rope Burn...

Day 2 of project-foam model-building.

3D computer model of the project

1.5 balls (out of 25) 

Here's 1 side of 1 ball

Prototype with 'tiny' balloons
(the finished project will be held up with meter-wide balloons)

Fancy little knots

Trying to lay out the first row of 4-balls

Work Station

Today was relatively productive. I did a load of laundry. I baked a batch of chocolate chip muffins. I also spent over an hour at the post office - waiting to pick up my new yoga/exercise ball - which I promptly inflated and spent 4 hours sitting on (and when I stood up it was the first time in months that my entire pelvic-region wasn't twanging and in pain! SCORE!!!) I also stopped off at the grocery store and picked up eggs and milk so that I can make pancakes for breakfast tomorrow!

For the record - the 4 hours spent on the yoga ball were not unproductive. I bounced along to some happy-sounding-music and helped Z and his partner measure strings and tie decorative knots through countless washers. The project is about a fifth complete - the HUGE (meter-in-diameter) balloons will be arriving in the next 3 days - but can't actually get inserted into the string-frame and inflated until the day before the project needs to be presented. We'll be tying knots until the day the project is due too.

If you've got some sort of penchant for rope-burn or ridiculous projects feel free to come on by and help us measure and tie.

I'm happy to pay in muffins or cookies or pancakes...

32 - Squash!

Last Wednesday was very busy. I spent the day out with The Crazy Lady and Freddie. We shopped for 'Little Things' - we were very successful and had a whole lot of fun.

Thursday was spent making chicken soup and watching Z work on the next project (due in about 2 weeks.) I made spirala a'la vodka (we were out of penne) for lunch and it turned out deliciously.

Friday was wet, rainy and miserable outside. We got the cooking and cleaning done relatively quickly. (Well, I got my stuff done anyway.) Then we set up the heaters anticipating a very chilly weekend. Friday night the apartment was actually bearably warm - having both radiators running (with all extra bedroom & bathroom doors closed) got the temperature up to a toasty 63F - which is QUITE an improvement over the 55F we've been averaging lately.

Today was relaxing and we felt silly having the heaters running because it was absolutely delightful and sunny outside.

All in all quite a nice quiet Shabbos. It's nice when it's just the two of us sometimes.

Menu:
Friday Night: roasted garlic, matbucha, chumus, chicken soup with matzah balls, vegetable soup (large onion, 2 carrots, 1 zucchini, 2 medium potatoes, 1/4 cup split peas, 3 Tbsp pearled barley, 2 liters water, salt & pepper, dash garlic powder), Sara Schapiro (sesame) chicken, couscous, peas

Shabbos Lunch: roasted garlic, matbucha, chumus, eggplant parmesan, potato gratin

Dessert: Blondies (with extra chocolate chips)

Koala Face!

My plan for today was to stay in bed. I was almost successful but not quite...I actually ended up being relatively productive when all was said and done.

I made a batch of cream cheese, washed 3 loads of laundry (including the hook-rugs on a gentle-cycle - so that I can take them to be framed), I organized the arts-n-crafts bins (and realized I've got just 2.5 squares left to do for the blanket I started knitting about 7 years ago), I organized a few shelves in the office and the papers on the shelves of the coffee table, organized my 2011 'income declaration' for the tax-man (now I need to pass by a mailbox), and cleared off the dining room table.

Z's friends came over early this afternoon and they spent all day studying for their huge final in 'building codes and laws' for tomorrow. I figured they deserved a nice dinner so I made a 'wok-ful' of chicken stir-fry which was served over perfectly-cooked white rice. Either they were starving or it was really good - because there weren't any leftovers.

After dinner I made myself comfortable in bed and caught up on some tv that I'd been hoarding. Eventually the guys finished reviewing all of their material and decided to play a game of Settlers. I'm hoping the game will go quickly and everyone can get an early night - mostly because I'm exhausted...

Tomorrow should be fun and busy for me. Visitors and outings and more laundry - yay!

Wishing Z lots of luck on his test tomorrow!

Orange Goes Down

Ok - fingers crossed that this one works.

Main Floor:
Kitchen
Dining Room
Living Room
Guest Room / Den
1.5 Bathrooms

Second Level:
3 Bedrooms
Master Bedroom
2 Bathrooms
Laundry Room

Basement:
Open Area (for future development)

Yeah - that should do it...

Braaaaain Sluuuug!

We spent Shabbos in The Sun House. It was a highly enjoyable weekend - as are all our weekends there. Just the little boys and the littler sister were Home but we still had a whole lot of fun. It was Grandma Iris' 17th yartzheit and Yo'Abba davened mussaf (so I dragged myself up the hill to be able to hear it. He did a GREAT job!) We spent the afternoon playing Settlers - because it's just so much fun - heeheehee...

Saturday night we watched some TV, got educated about which cuts of meat correspond to which numbers here in The Holy Land and how to cook them, and tried to figure out how to entertain ourselves - until somehow it was 10:30pm and we all decided that the best course of action was probably to go to sleep.

Sunday morning rolled around bright and sunny. Trip to the pharmacy, some SuperH shopping and then an ultrasound, a few minutes finding some lunch, an unsuccessful trip to a baby-stuff-store and a little while longer deciding what to do next... Eventually Z got frustrated to we packed up the car and headed off towards Home.

Along the way we stopped off in Shilat to meet with our future neighbor and pick up a paper from him. While we were there we dropped into Rami Levy and bought some treats and switched our cell-phone plans over (cause they've got the cheapest rate available in the country at the moment. Even cheaper than what the carriers offer for weekend 'soldier' plans! So that's pretty cheap!)

We were going to detour to visit friends in Chashmonaim but made a wrong turn which meant we were on the road home - so we took it as a 'sign' and came Home instead. On our way into the city we picked up pizza for dinner (gosh it's weird to be able to do that - I'm enjoying it 'while I can'!)

Do Nothing Day(s)...

Yesterday I shlepped myself out of bed at 7:30am, got dressed as quickly as I could and ran out to get my monthly bloodwork done. (They only draw blood between 7:30am-9am and I've learned that the trick to getting in & out quickly is to get there before 8.) I made it across town and was ready to head home just as a dozen people wandered into the clinic.

I spent about an hour putting together a a little invitation for a client. I was thrilled that they liked the first design that I sent them. It was a painless project, they're really sweet people and it gave me something to do. The rest of the day was boring - I caught up on some tv, washed most of the dishes (well - whatever there was space for on the drying racks) and figured the best place for me was warm and toasty in bed with a hot water bottle.

Today was only a drop more productive than yesterday. I got 2 loads of laundry done, ate so much I thought my stomach would pop, and answered 2-dozen phone calls (it was one of those rare days when both phones rang - a lot.)

Truth be told - I spent most of the day in bed with a toasty hot water bottle watching tv. I got up and walked a bunch of laps around the apartment because I figured I need some minimal level of exercise.

It rained a lot today. ('A lot' might be an understatement of sorts...) The ceiling is dripping from 3 places in the apartment now. (Yes - the fix-it-people know they have to deal with it - but it can't be done until the springtime rolls around - or the concrete won't set and dry properly and they'll just have to fix it again...)

I love keeping my fridge and freezer stocked with soup - it's a great way to warm up my insides and my fingers. Mmmmm, mugs of soup!