Month: May 2015

So as we all know, Carla and Adam got married last weekend (!!).  Stephen and I went down to Knoxville on Thursday (at like 5am) and got back home Sunday afternoon.  I think we both had an enjoyable time!  It was nice.  Here are some pictures.  (Apologies again for what seems like insubstantial blog entries…..but……..)

blog - moss garden

blog - stephen and rosa blog - stphen and mary

Also – sorry to Stephen and Rosa about the picture on the left, but after taking about 10 shots and none of them looking any good, I opted just to keep the picture where they both look bad.  At least that way, no one feels left out.

Top picture is a little moss garden from the trail gardens at UT (which were gorgeous).

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blog - carla 2 blog - carla 4 blog - carla

I made four cakes for this wedding, and after one or two snags, I think they all turned out looking pretty good!  And they tasted ok, to boot!

In non-related news, I have started new characters in both Oblivion and Skyrim; both are altmer and both are named Faire Agarwen (Oblivion)/Agarwyn (Skyrim).  Both are mages, as I have never played a pure mage in either game and needed something new to try.  So far Agarwen is only a level 2 or 3, but Agarwyn is up to around level 13 so I’m starting to be able to use more powerful spells with her – and it’s great!  I’m about half-way through the College of Winterhold questline (which is the first one I’ve really focused on with Agarwyn).  Also I spent most of Monday getting the necessary guild recommendations for Agarwen so that she could join the Arcane University.  I left off there right before going off to get the wood for the Mage’s Staff, mostly because I didn’t feel like fighting necromancers.

Anyway, it’s fun, and I’m having fun, yes.  Again I feel compelled to say that I like the character development and leveling in Oblivion better than Skyrim just because it’s more complicated, and you can take your characters in more varied directions than in Skyrim because you can choose more specializations.

Um, anyway.  I’ll stop now.

Another’n

purse front

(Image links to Etsy listing)

Made this one over the weekend, after the Renaissance Fair on Saturday.  It was a good weekend, but I’m awfully tired this morning.  I need to go grocery shopping today for cake ingredients, but instead of doing that over my lunch break I think I’m just going to go home and take a nap.  Sounds so awfully lovely.

Would write more, but…trying to conserve my energy for work, I guess.

Mother’s Day and Being a Birthmother

As with most of my blog posts, this is not going to be well thought-out.  It’s on my mind, so I’m trying to write to understand myself a little better.

But, Mother’s Day always makes me feel sort of conflicted.  I am a birth mother, which puts me in a subset of Motherhood – but one that is usually written off by other people as not being legitimate or worth remembering.  It puts me in a weird place, though, because while I don’t want to bring it up regularly and talk about it with everyone, it’s still VERY MUCH a part of my past and of who I am now — so I usually find myself, around Mother’s Day, feeling sort of left out.  Like I’m just asking for attention if I want to feel special on this day, and like I should just be able to let it go because I’m not a “real mother.”  (No one has actually said that to me – just my brain.)

I don’t know that I want any more than to just be accepted and known as a woman who bore a child for 9 months, has a bona fide birthing story, and who made the best decision that she could for her daughter.  I know, it’s easy to forget these things about me because I don’t talk about them often, and because Sarah has parents who love her and are not me.

Oh, I don’t know.  I just wish that I could bring this up more easily — without feeling like I’m asking for attention or sympathy.  I just want to tell you about my experience, and to let you know that even though I don’t understand what it’s like to raise children, I do know what it’s like to love and want the beautiful baby you just gave birth to.

I do not know how people with children ever get anything done.  I have absolutely no idea how my parents did it.  I don’t ever seem to have enough time to do everything that I want to do at home – and imagine throwing a kid or two into the mix!!  Does it just force you to view everything with a different mindset?  As in, I have to get this done so I’m not even going to allow myself to think about what might happen if I don’t do it.  Because I totally procrastinate all the time.  Like last night, instead of mowing the lawn or doing laundry, I made a bunch of cupcakes.  Granted, I had a good reason to make them — I need to figure out what recipe I’m going to use for the cakes for Carla’s wedding (verdict: maybe this cake recipe, but definitely not the icing recipe).  But I sorely need to do laundry, and straighten my bedroom, and clean the bathroom, and mow the lawn.  You know — all this stuff that I regularly talk about doing but seldom do.

I say all this, because after work tonight I need to go pick up some boxes of books at Ryan’s, and borrow the lawn mower so I can mow the lawn.  And then I need to do laundry and wash dishes from all the baking I did last night (plus I made bean enchiladas….which were delicious).

But do I want to do any of that?  Oh, no.  I have been feeling a new quilt coming on lately, and am toying with using the leftover green linen from my cloak, with the map fabric I bought at the Country Living fair – and maybe doing an Escher inspired design.  Not sure yet.

ALSO though, I want to spend the evening making a few very small leather items – like wallets, or small envelope clutches of some sort.  (And honestly I’m more likely to do these than to start on a quilt tonight….)

Then again, there’s also Oblivion, which, frankly, I am still rather enjoying.  I finished the main quest line, so I now have Champion of Cyrodiil added to my resume — along with Arch Mage, and whatever the Arena champion is called.  I also have been to the Shivering Isles one measly time, and need to go back there to explore some more.

Oh man.  See?  How do people with kids fit this kind of stuff into their schedules?!  I mean, they would either need to stay at home all the time and not have to work 8 hours/day, or have older children who they can trust to not ruin things while they’re crafting…….etc.  NOT TO MENTION laundry and housework!!!  I’m feeling tired just thinking about it.

Ginkgo Purse

First of all, this is my newest purse.  I LOVE it, and made it with myself in mind….but am listing it on Etsy instead.  I just got some new veg tan (which is less suede-like and more stiff) which I think I might use to make myself one of these – because the ginkgo leaves turned out just so well, and I really love it.

gingko detail gingko full 2 gingko purse 2 gingko purse ginkgo full

So this is one thing I did over the weekend.  On Sunday, we went to the craft fair at Centennial Park (which is NOT called TACA anymore, but I’m afraid I can’t remember what it’s now called — so we went to the craft fair that is not called TACA).  We both ended up buying these gorgeous wood-turned pens from the same vendor, who was selling them for a pretty reasonable price (comparatively, anyway).  Stephen’s works fine, but the ink cartridge that came in mine seems to be dried out already so I might be making a pit stop to Target…..

Anyway, also got these adorable terra cotta herb garden markers, so here is a picture of my “herb garden” this year.  They may be in pots — but they are flourishing!!  The parsley IS looking a tad yellow, I know, but I wasn’t home all weekend so it hasn’t been getting much attention.  The basil is really taking off – I’m excited about all this fresh basil, especially since the fresh veggies from the summer CSA should be coming in soon!

herbs

One more picture.  This was my lunch today (er, half of it).  Sourdough bread, turkey, brie, greens, tomatoes, pesto mayo, and garlic aioli — with my little cast iron panini press.  HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS SANDWICH!!!!!

sandwich

Finished my cloak last night, guys.  And it’s sooo pretty.  The linen blend has an expensive feel about it even though it was one of the cheapest ones they had at Joann’s.  Would look better if I had bought material to do a lining too, but 1) too expensive, and 2) I want to wear it in May, so that would make it too hot, as well.

cloak

OH IT’S SO PRETTY OMG.  Even though I apparently forgot to suck in my stomach when I took the picture!!  I will get someone to take a picture in better lighting, and with the white dress I’m going to wear with it…but just am excited so wanted to put this picture up right now anyway.