afternoon shadows

enjoying the relatively quiet days at home. 

well, I'll be

I actually made some art. Hurray! A few pages from the week of Christmas. There are more on my flickr, and more for me to add tomorrow, too. 

(The book is getting so fat that it doesn't open flat anymore, hence my fingers in every picture. I kind of like it though. Gives it a nice scale.)

Anyway, besides art, here are a few other things that have been occupying my time this week:

-updating my tumblr more often. I think my attention span is better suited to tumblr these days. 

-Rereading Ina May Gaskin's Guide to Childbirth. I highly recommend this to any pregnant woman, or really any woman. I usually have an aversion to this word, but it's very. . . empowering. And has helped me to overcome some of my fears and weirdnesses about birth. One disclaimer, it is kind of for hippies, so if you are not into crunchy tales of giving birth naturally on a farm, it might not be the book for you. But I'm into it. 

-Trying to maintain a positive attitude despite the fact that I have HAD IT with wives tales, other people's advice, birthing horror stories, etc. I'm a pretty sensitive person and I think I take things too seriously, I just need to let all of it roll off my back. Honestly, though, who wouldn't hate hearing things like, "your hips are too small to give birth naturally." What the hell, ladies?! Let's be kind and understanding with one another. Luckily the good stories and sharing have outnumbered the bad, but the bad ones just linger with me. 

-On to better things. . . . I checked out Swedish Cakes and Cookies from the library and I think I might actually have to buy it. I made "Marta's Chocolate Slices" last night and not only were they super simple to make, the results were fantastic. Plus the book is just cute:

Fireplace mantle dressed up for Christmas.

I will be spending most of my day in this room. . . . I'm home from work! Yay for bosses that do not want a pregnant woman driving in a snowstorm. It's a good day for baking cookies and finishing a bunch of baby-related tasks I've been meaning to work on.

new art making space

Most of my art supplies are now condensed into a basket for big paper and a rolling cart/shelves for small papers, photos, and everything else. The cart fits pretty neatly into the front closet. And when I need to work, I roll it out and work at the dining room table. So far I'm pretty pleased with the arrangement. The lighting in the dining room is a lot cozier than the office, so that's a plus.

I can't say there's much. . or anything. . happening there right now though. I'm exhausted today. I actually fell asleep on the couch at 6:45 waiting for Mike to come home and make me dinner. It's been kind of a rough week at work, so I'm not sure if it's that or some crazy baby growth spurt. Either way, I'm glad tomorrow is Friday.

progress and process

I continue to become more and more at peace with our house/space situation. At one point I felt like all my interests and art supplies were going to be boxed up and put in the attic and forgotten. But I feel like I turned a corner at some point this week and things have really been on the upswing.

Some things that are helping:
-Tackling one thing at a time. I think it had been so overwhelming to me that I kind of shut down and just assumed the worst. I'm finding that if I clean one shelf or reorganize one cabinet at a time, it all seems manageable. Plus we have way more room in my house than I realize, if only things are organized in a more functional way.

-Getting rid of stuff I truly don't need. How many books are on my shelves that I will never have an interest in reading again? How many tiny scraps of paper have I been holding onto because they might be perfect for some theoretical future project? It's best to put it all in a goodwill box or the recycling and just move along.

-Embracing the change. The more I work on reorganizing, the more I feel like I'm making tangible strides towards Making Room in our Lives for the Baby. And then I'm happier about everything.

clean bookshelf, with my vintage books for clipping at the top. I know it's not lifestyle photography at it's finest, but it's prettier than it was before, that's for sure.

Thanksgiving

Thanks for all the thoughtful comments on my last post. It really is nice to be able to share something on a blog and feel like I'm receiving something good in return. I'm definitely less stressed now that I've made a list, and also given myself a reality check.

I have to say, I think Harriet might be on to something. . . maybe I really am more anxious about the baby than I'm willing to admit, but it's easy to transfer the worries to the furniture, to something tangible. So I have been turning those thoughts over in my mind and trying to make some peace about all of it.

And now, some happier, more Thanksgiving-ier news! I have been baking every night this week, which is so satisfying to me. Even when I'm doing two loads of dishes every night and not sitting down until 9 PM. We're having Thanksgiving at my parents tomorrow, so I really don't need to do or make too much, but I still like to bring something. This year it's two pies and some cinnamon rolls for Friday breakfast.

I'm super excited about this pie recipe from Martha Stewart Living, I think the November issue. Triple Chocolate Pumpkin pie! How can you go wrong?

(obviously not my photo! thank you amazing MSL food stylists!)

My other pie is pretty classic, the "Perfect Pumpkin Pie." I've made this one before. It really is foolproof, and takes almost no time if you opt to use a premade pie shell.

I'm so happy for this four day weekend and for all the things I have to be thankful for. I hope you have a great holiday, too.

election day 2008, part 2

as american as. . . , originally uploaded by katie-oltremare.

I figured today is a fitting day to post something as patriotic as an apple pie. I made this on Sunday, and I think this was by far the prettiest pie I've ever baked. It was tasty, too, as evidenced by the fact that most of it was eaten before I even had a chance to take a photo.

I cast my ballot this morning, and I have to say I did get a little misty-eyed in the voting booth. I feel pretty proud today.

It was crazy at work, almost felt like a holiday. Just kind of a heightened sense of . . . something. Though that could have also been a heightened sense of worry about traffic. With the big Obama rally downtown lots of my coworkers were leaving early to avoid any big jams. It's kind of fun to live so close to all the action.

weekend bits

my pumpkin. It's supposed to say "i (heart) (narwhal)", but it actually just looks like a weird face to me.

Friday night we went to a pumpkin carving party, hosted by some of my friends from college that I hadn't seen in forever, which was nice. I have to say, I am glad that most of my social group has moved on from the "let's all get together and then drink way too much" era of socializing. Not only is it a plus for me to be pregnant and still have fun, it's so much nicer to be able to do something creative together, have interesting conversations about real topics, and get home at a decent hour. Yet another step forward into real adulthood.

Today was long (we forgot about switching the clocks last night) but I got a lot done and it's been a pleasant sunday. Made chili and baked a pie; cleaned a lot. All good things.



my lunch from today. leftover winter squash soup, triscuits and cheese, and v8. vegetable-y!

so, two blogs in two days. the momentum has started. [i meant to post this on sunday, that still counts, right?]

it's a delicious soup

Today was the last farmer's market of the year, and I'm so glad I went. The chilly weather seemed to turn most people away and it wasn't as crowded as it is normally. Today's goods: "Pumpkin Pecan" granola (yummy!), acorn squash and butternut squash to make this soup, Jonathan and Granny Smith apples for a pie, a few sweet potatoes to bake for side dishes this week, and a baguette from the nun's bakery. I thought it was funny that the lady who sold me all the produce said, "these will all keep for at least three months," I laughed and said it would probably all be eaten within the next four days. Seasonal fall foods are the best.

When I got home from the market I started roasting the squashes for tonight's soup, and listened to a Fresh Air interview with Michael Pollan. I don't know what I would do without Fresh Air podcasts. It's part of my Saturday domestic routine, cleaning or cooking while listening to Terry Gross interview fascinating people. I tend to get a little superstitious about things, either that or I'm just a huge creature of habit. I feel like I can't work in the kitchen without it.

So hey, it's National Blog Posting Month!I believe I have tried and failed to do this every year, and I'm sure this year will be no different. At least it makes me more aware of my sporadic blogging. I do have a lot to share and I also want to keep better track of what is happening in my life right now. . . my last few months before the baby. It would be nice to have a happy record of that.

things to do

I never know what to call my work. art? collage? scrapbook? it is what it is though. i'm pleased with these two, made the day after we had our 20 week ultrasound. I always feel like my artwork is better when i'm happy.

This is the kind of week where all I want to do is cut and paste and cut and paste. just let the pages in my art journal fill up, and make postcards for friends, and start a new sewing project. instead, I'll be working late every night and coming home with enough energy to eat, finish a few chores, and veg out in front of msnbc. I am always a bit envious of people that can stay up late working on projects and still function normally. i guess being pregnant doesn't really help that right now.

The prospect of an entirely free weekend makes it all better though. the weather has been so perfect this week it feels like time to start all the fall projects on my list.
-finally, finally putting up curtains in our bedroom. i found some simple white sheers and I think they might look great with a wide brown grosgrain ribbon sewn along the bottom. if I get ambitious.
-reorganizing and redecorating our mantle. I'm starting to get the thrifting urge big time, since it's been a couple of weeks, and hopefully I can pick up a few cute things.
-cleaning up the garden for wintertime. i have to say, the garden definitely fell to the end of the to do list this summer and it's looking a little unkempt, to say the least.
-organizing our wreck of a spice cabinet. you should see it, it's not pretty. so far I haven't found any perfect solutions. . . but I'm convinced it's out there somewhere.

to be honest though, if I even accomplish one of those four I'd be pretty stoked. i like takin 'er easy these days.

happy home

i actually have a lot of artwork to share, but it's been so dark outside I've had no chance to photograph it. hopefully soon though. it's been a good week for my art book.

So. Today was a crummy day at work. Half the day I had too much to do, the other half I was sitting around doing nothing and waiting for other people to finish their projects. Not fun. Plus I seem to have some kind of mood sponge, and whenever someone close to me is in a bad mood, it rubs off. Not fun, part two. Then, the worst part. I had to attend a meeting with three of the biggest bigwigs of the company since my boss was out sick. I was slightly unprepared, not to mention feeling nervous and out of place. The actual meeting went fine. . . until they starting talking politics. Talk about uncomfortable. Two of them had opinions that could not be further from mine. . . . ugh, horrible. I wanted to puke and cry at the same time. Ouch. A topper on top of a bad day of feeling unsettled and moody.

But there's good news. As soon as I got home, I cleaned the kitchen and started making dinner, a chicken pot pie from scratch. I changed the sheets in the bedroom and did a load of laundry. Had an idea for a collage and started cutting some pieces while the pot pie was in the oven. And now i feel like I've flushed out all the bad of the day and reordered myself. Sweet relief.

All these simple things have made me feel so much better about myself than whatever dumb thing I accomplished at work today. And obviously, I don't feel like this all the time, I do enjoy my work. But after a rough day it's nice to come home and be comforted by domesticity.

not fast enough for us

"Walking was not fast enough, so we ran. Running was not fast enough, so we galloped. Galloping was not fast enough, so we sailed. Sailing was not fast enough, so rolled merrily along long, metal tracks. Long metal tracks were not fast enough, so we drove. Driving was not fast enough, so we flew.

Flying isn't fast enough, not fast enough for us. We want to get there faster. Get where? Wherever we're not. But a human soul can only go as fast as a human man can walk, they used to say. In that case, then where are all the souls? Left behind. They wander here and there, slowly, dim lights flickering in the marshes of the night, looking for us. But, they're not nearly as fast enough, not for us, we're way ahead of them, they'll never catch up. That's why we can go so fast; our souls dont weigh us down."
Margaret Atwood, The Tent

I have a lot to share but not a lot to write today. i'm conducting an experiment this week and trying to slow down and cut back on some of the noise in my life. I'm hoping to reduce the massive and wasteful amount of time I spend on the internet, the mindless TV watching, the obsessive email checking, the shopping online with no intention of buying. It's just NOT good for too many reasons to list. I want to be more aware of my time and how I'm spending it.

So with that, I don't know when I'll come back to my blog, it could be a few weeks or so. Just a little break. I'll leave you with a few links and art projects and things.

I can take a break from a lot of things on the internet, but not flickr. And definitely not my favorites. Lately I've been looking for photos of creative gardens, outdoor rooms, and beautiful naturey things.

I'm reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver right now, and it's definitely inspiring me to spend more time in the kitchen and garden. All the seasonal, super healthy recipes from the book are here.

Measure for Measure is a New York times blog about songwriting, and Andrew Bird is one of the contributors. Fascinating stuff.





some collages from this weekend. i could have made ten more pages in the same color palette, I was really enjoying it.

Thanks for listening. See you soon.

lettuce and bloomsdale spinach germinating as we speak

tiny signs of life in our yard. and a stack of books that sums up where my thoughts reside these days.

"the art of french vegetable gardening" is dreamy and full of gorgeous garden photos. it makes me kind of swoon-y and gives me romantic notions about my own little "potager" (fancy french word for vegetable garden).

growing my own vegetables has been one of the most rewarding things I've ever done and I highly, highly recommend it for everyone. even if you only have a little patio you can grow container tomatoes and herbs or even super fancy stuff like dwarf eggplants. seriously, go for it!! okay, that's the end of my little gardening PSA. :)

five things

five things!

1. some new art journal pages. :)




2. this past weekend was one of the best we've had so far this year. absolutely perfect weather. and this morning when I woke up the grass had all magically turned green. it kind of feels like the wizard of oz when everything turns technicolor. and after all the yard work and being outside this weekend, I feel like pinocchio when he turned from a wooden puppet into a real boy. thank you springtime, i am a real girl again.

3. if you are at all interested in the work of emily martin of the black apple, do yourself a favor and download the podcast/interview with her at craftsanity. it's an hour and a half long but it just flies by, she is so charming and informative. it made me respect and admire her even more than I already do. highly, highly recommended.

4. i have been stuck in a lunch rut for about two months now and I couldn't stand the thought of another spinach salad or tuna sandwich. thank goodness for smitten kitchen. I made this bulgur salad with chickpeas and red peppers and it is sooo good, I was in nigella mode after work, eating it straight from the bowl standing in front of the frig. In general, I don't cook a lot of fancy or new things, but I always want to, and this was a great way to do it. now have a week's worth of lunches I can actually look forward to.

5. finally. there was a little talk of this in the comments of my last post, but I think it's definitely time for a mix cd swap. I made a boo-yah playlist and I'm willing to trade . . .email me (katielicht at gmail.com) if you're down. YAY.

saturday mornings

every weekend I have the best laid plans to get up early on saturday, run errands, make art, bake something, just get going!

well, that's happened maybe once. most of the times I hit snooze until 8:30 and then sit around in my pajamas drinking coffee and watching reruns of the soup. today was somewhat better. until I started making bread and realized there were no eggs. and i got distracted by flickr. . . . then the morning slips back into its lazy inertia.

i did take advantage of the glorious morning light in our dining room to take some photos. this will eventually make it's way into my 27 mini book, which comes along sloooowly but surely.

my favorite books of the past year.

here's to a more productive rest of the day.

sparkling clean

is there anything better than a clean house?
 
the apartment therapy spring cure is going pretty well for me. so far, it doesn't really seem that organized online, but the book has really given me a boost to get things done. More than anything it's raised my consciousness of my surroundings, what works about my house and what doesn't. And after the whole week of really pondering what needs to be done, I realized that what my house really needs is to stay clean and clutter free. I don't really need new furniture. I don't need more knicknacks.

okay, I have to admit though, I did buy an wood and metal monogram from anthropologie, and a few pieces of art from etsy seller labokoff. (highly recommended! beautiful prints, i LOVE them.) and finally took some wedding photos to get framed, but that's a different story. why yes, i did get married almost three years ago, thanks.

my prints from labokoff. aren't they pretty?

anyway! clean and clutter free. that's the goal. I cleaned so hard on saturday afternoon, like workout hard. it was so incredibly satisfying. I think the soundtrack helped, too:
fruit bats, spelled in bones (twice)
belle and sebastian, if you're feeling sinister (twice)
the strokes, is this it

I'm going to make up a fake statistic and guarantee you 94% success in scrubbing every surface in your house while listening to these albums. it worked for me!

still winter

it seems like there are signs of spring everywhere but here. the magazines and catalogs in my mailbox are full of hyacinths and short skirts. even the sun setting later makes it seem like my neighborhood should be warm and blooming. but it's not.

i don't think I'm really complaining though; it was warm enough today to ride my bike to the grocery store, one of my favorite activities of all time. there's a little path and a big pond between my house and the ultra foods. even though it's still wintry it's pretty in a sparse way. isn't that an interesting little seed pod?

thoughtful

I really love getting comments on my blog, and flickr, and just connecting with people through the infite tubes of the internet.:) Often though, I just read other blogs and never comment or email people, as much as I might enjoy or be inspired by them. So, it's my resolution for the new week to do a bit more connecting.

This was inspired a little bit by Carrie & Danielle's friday focus. I think I might start doing these little resolutions on a semi-weekly basis.

Other nice things this friday:

-thinking about the rob & big DVD making its way to my mailbox in a few days. I LOVE this show and it makes me laugh so hard every week. hijinx!

-fun friday lunch out with my coworkers today

-signing up for the Apartment Therapy Spring Cure. I have been meaning to do so much with our house but I always end up slacking or ignoring it. Maybe this will give me the boost I need. . . .

-my Pandora "Cat Stevens" station. Soothing sounds of the seventies, totally mellow.

-a whole weekend with no plans. lots of time for relaxing and working on fun projects!

happy weekend. :)

headed south

Tomorrow we're on our way down to Florida. Resounding YAY all around. I will be back next week with photos. and a tan.

Just a few last thoughts. Tonight as I was intently scrubbing the sink, sweeping the kitchen, and generally tidying the entire house, I had a flashback to being about 12 and asking my mom, "why do you always clean the house before we go on vacation? it's not like anyone's going to see it." but now, I GET it. you want to come home to peace, and clean.

I love how being an adult solves most of those weird mysteries of childhood.

oh blueprint

today the office was quiet so I took myself out for a long lunch. I picked up the latest & last copy of Blueprint and had some black bean soup at panera.

So, as I mentioned before, Blueprint is folding and I'm super sad. I did promise back then to scan some of my tearsheets and share them here. As you can see. . . I'm kind of nerdy about magazines. I don't like to save whole issues, since I already have enough things collecting dust in my house, so I go through all my mags a few times a year and tear out the pages I love. Then they go into protector sheets and into a binder. I LOVE my magazine binder. It's like my own personal world of interiors, projects, editorials & photography I love. . . mmm. I highly recommend doing this, it's given me quite a lot of pleasure.

anyway, here are a few of my favorites! all images are from blueprint.

these are from a section about organizing your entryway, i believe. the styling on this is fantastic.



editorial about the home of joelle hoverson, who owns purl soho and purl bee. it just looks so warm and inviting.

I'm kind of obsessed with that stuffed deer head.

a story about organizing a small home. i love the colors here.



I'm such a sucker for art-directed vignettes like this


that was fun! since I finally own a scanner (yay, thanks husband!) there will be a lot more sharing here.