christmas is pink

well, at least some of us are so lucky.  i don’t know how the rest of you survive.

boy got me the knife and cutting board.  and aunt meggie got me pink clips while my grandma made me more mag-neat-o apples.  the pink salt and pepper shakers are from my dad.  who thought “i had to have them.”  and he was right.

look at the holes in the tops of those suckers.  we’re a match made in heaven.  not to mention boy got me black lava salt this year.  but i will have to save it for making sushi, even though it would be fun to spring on the table.

my sister-in-law got me the amy butler scrapbooking bag, which i will be sure to load up.  considering how hubby has kicked me out of the desk.  he says i’m “too messy.”  and my little brother got me the pink mixing bowl at the last minute (after repeated threatenings over chat and e-mail).  i have to keep tabs on that one.

here i am in my pink wellies from the one i love.  i think they will be handy.  for when i am too lazy to put on shoes, if i ever go outside.

and my swank-o cheese grater from boy’s sister.

pretty soon i will have to collect them all.  it’s a never ending process.

do you think it really is too much for one person?

nah.

so that was that.  maybe i will get around to showing the kiddo’s loot.  if you dig trains and killer whales…  now i am off to make thai coconut soup (courtesy of mack-d).  happy new years y’all!

whoopity

this is an apron i jazzed up for my friend laura.

take that.

otherwise i have a sweet pile of pink kitchen stuff to share with you when i get around to taking some pictures.  i can hardly wait.  but i’ll let you know now, that my new pink salt and pepper shakers have completely stolen my heart.  along with my pink dublin wellies from that sweet charming man i’m married to.  christmas is grand.

the chat on the ride home

“honey, can’t we pleeaase go to india and bring home some babies?”

“no.  if you want babies we’re just going to have to do it the old fashioned way.”

“i don’t like the old fashioned way!  i get fat.  *and* it takes too long and they end up funny looking anyways.”

“no, i meant i’m just going to have to marry an indian girl.”

playing with the self timer

“okay boys, stand here.  jehu, get your finger out of your nose.  gideon, move up.  look at the camera and smile.  leave the baby alone.  JEHU!  GET THE FINGER OUT OF YOUR NOSE!”
and then i smile nicely.
*poof*

that’s how this all goes down.

aren’t they cute girls?  that’s what grandpa thought.  actually, marc’s hair is my favorite.  he gives hugh jackman a little competition.  crazy sexy like that.

here are the boys showing you their muscles.  they’re tough (for girls).

but mostly they’re just rip-your-heart-out cute.  especially when their grammy shops for them.  (she did veto the rubber boots.  those were my fault, we were on our way out for church in a snowstorm.  i only wish they were red.)

and there you have it.  happy christmas from the otto’s!

that’s the last you’re going to see of me for a while.  i finished my sewing yesterday and now i am just going to knock this house silly.  i love coming home from a trip to a spotless house.  sigh.  it’s dreamy, for like 5 minutes.  but so worth it for the 4 days it stays clean while you’re gone.  then i can just relax and think, “i bet my house is clean…what about now?  oh yes, i think it’s still clean.  what do you know?  this is great, now where’s the chocolate?”

junkie

while hunting the internet in search of ipod fodder, i eventually bumped into faith by hearing.  these little guys made me laugh.  i thought i was the only one with such proclivities.  my husband sometimes catches a glimpse of my playlists and exclaims, “what the hell do you listen to?”

well,  dr. j.i. packer, the rare recordings of jim wilson, early mark driscoll, doug wilson (much to everyone’s horror), also doug jones, alistair begg, doug batchelor, ken meyers, evan wilson and our very own, joel van hoogen.  but mostly, i have no idea who i listen to.  i’m not selective, just desperate.  i reached the point where i couldn’t clean my kitchen one more time unless i was plugged in and on auto.

it’s now my auxillary brain, i listen to around 3 or 4 sermons a day.  and so far, so good.  i don’t run into very many that annoy me, even if i don’t agree with them all.  the result: i now have a knee deep, stockpile of favorites for anyone else who might be desperate as well.  not to mention, there are already some in side bar under “audio” (which i will try to keep updated).  and if you’re the type who thinks “heavy breathing, over emotional, tv evangelist, with a southern accent” when you hear the word “sermon,” think again.  this is much more fun.

christmas jammies

handmade by grammy.

she says they were easy too.  i would love to have piles and piles of button up flannels for the kids.  with matching housecoats and slippers.  except i’m deathly afraid of clothing patterns.  i’d rather go back to school and take physics.

and that’s why we have grandmas.  check out the sweet, humongous buttons on gideon’s shirt (they’re my favorite).

in other news, i’m sewing a few things myself.  but you can’t see them ’till after christmas.  that and there’s still the whole prospect of me finishing them…  also my faucet broke off today.  so when you turn it on it either shoots you in the eye or hits the ceiling.  and while we’re on the subject of despair, let me mention that the last christmas package i mailed cost $51, the christmas tree has run out of chocolate, and it’s still cold.  i hate being cold.

jingle

we’ve been trying to do a lot of crafts for the holiday season.  cranking out my festive spirit i am.  this one was a hit.  the boys particularly like playing with it and it hasn’t even suffered any ill effects.  way to go martha.

so get the recipe and try it out.  (i know, her’s are cuter.  go figure.)

other than that, we’re just freezing to death and waiting to open presents.

bah humbug

“what kind of tree is that?”  yes, gideon had to be won over.  but it was free.  hubby climbed to the very top of the catalpa tree for it.  $40 for a christmas tree didn’t resonate with me this year.  neither did getting down the christmas boxes (with the vintage ornaments that jehu was fond of eating last year).

so we just made them out of paper.  and pine cones.  although i’m afraid the boys weren’t as interested as i hoped they’d be.  they just wanted to play with the rotary paper cutter and the exact-o knife.

but they do like raiding the paper cones after dinner for chocolate.  i’m not sure this would be a good tradition to perpetuate.  plus, the tree doesn’t stand a chance against mommy.

my favorite ornaments were the seed pods that came attached.  i just slathered them in glitter glue.  very fun.  and the boys enjoyed hunting pine cones during their trips to the park.

and acorns.  they actually look more like acorns when you just glitter the cap.  but we found that out too late.

we also made a mile of circle punch garland.  i got a punch at michael’s and laid it to all the christmas cards i had saved over the years.  then the boys colored the stickers we used to attach the punch outs to thread.  it turned out very neat.

the next best thing is that i don’t have to water the stupid thing.  it doesn’t shed on my floor and the kids can’t brush against it because it’s too tall.  last year we had tinsel smeared all over the house.

i might have a hard time setting the torch to it come new years.  but my husband is kind of excited about the prospect.  and actually, before i even got married, this was my christmas theory.  make all your christmas ornaments with your kids and then have a new years bonfire.  unfortunately, i hit a few providential yard sales later in life, and it couldn’t be helped.

indeed

not only do i have curtains, i have a picture.  *a* picture, mind you.  only one.  in the entire house.  i guess i’m not the kind of person who moves in and breaks out the throw pillows and aromatherapy candles.  we’ve only lived here for six months.  much too soon to get a couch or break out the family photos, really.  but i was excited about this.  some day i will get around to poking holes in all the walls.

after i finish taping them, texturing them and painting them that is.  i don’t know why i’m so neurotic about decorating.  i think i’m secretly afraid that if things got “comfortable” the baseboards would never actually get nailed on and no one would buy door knobs for the basement.  but i’m sure one picture won’t hurt.

i already posted that you can snag the free pdf of this print (pink or not pink).  and if you do, the floating frames at joanne’s fit an 11×17 nicely.  i painted this one white and was very pleased.  until the kids broke the glass and i had to buy a replacement.  (which i secretly knew would happen all along.)

jay-foo, jay-foo, it could happen to you.

the little bugger is three.  ohhh.  this year we did the perfect cop-out birthday.  we went to the library.  i did most of my prepping the night before, since i have not been in the birthday mood for quite some time.  even so, everything seemed to turn out nicely.  i just wasn’t sure if it was legal.

we reserved a room at the new library branch under the auspices of “mommy’s mornings” (a play group i belong to).  except technically, i think you’re supposed to be a genuine non-profit if you want to abuse the facility in such a manner.  as we did get some prime “librarian” looks through glass while the mad proceedings were going on.  “is that a birthday party?  do we allow birthday parties?”

here is baby girl.  and me putting on my party face, “oh my goodness, did i bring enough scissors?  bah, i forgot the paper, where’s the paper?  wipes?  no wipes?”  (this is why my husband hates parties.)

but i must say, we did have fun.  you can watch the video here.  there were 26 of us all together with four babies in the mutant slug stage.  you know, where they just smear themselves around the floor looking for outlets and the like.  it was very cozy.  albeit somewhat loud.

we made crafts for about an hour and then grammy read everyone stories.

she also made our dinosaur nest cupcakes with candy rocks and popcorn flavored jelly bellies, which i don’t recommend, mind you.  they were just the only ones that looked liked eggs.

but i do suggest you check out martha stewart’s christmas crafts.  i found all kinds of goodies there.  i imagine everyone already knows about the cool paper globes but the paper cones are fun too, especially when you fill them with candy.   we also made the circle punch garland and glitter pine cones and i have my eye on the felt cut outs and beads for fun snowy day projects.  this button wreath is kind of irresistible too.

and now that that’s over with it’s time to clean up this house which seems to have gone belly up.  that, and find a christmas tree before it’s too late.  those things do seem to sneak up on you.  but thanks to all you who came and especially to my relatives who show up in force to get things done.  happy birthday jehu!