79 degrees this afternoon as I huffed home from work on my bike with trailer carrying toddler behind. It’s here! The weather that keeps me outside and away from other obligations and needs like laundry, errand running and writing.
We had a busy weekend full of seeds and rain barrels, friends and shared food on patios. I am quite behind with seed planting but, eh. It’ll produce. My seeds arrived from High Mowing while I was away so the little nuggets of promise have been yearning for my tidy placement in the soil. I planted eleventy hundred peas and spinach. And, turnips, which apparently are not parsnips.
See, I ordered turnips and was all miffed when package arrived because they don’t look like parsnips because they are their own vegetable with their own identity and such and well it is embarrassing but we’ll enjoy them I’m sure.
My man and I cooked all day on Saturday, in between seeds and weeds and watching bug in her new bonnet, an epic Italian gravy for our supper club meal to be held in our backyard, the first outdoor dining of the 2009. yay.
The evening was splendid even though I couldn’t comsume the oooohhh aaahhhh yummmm wine because, it turns out, bug’s going to be a big sister. Yep.
This pregnancy is slightly more planned than the last and I am very excited but also freaking out about how I will stretch my attention and love even more…est ce que c’est possible? Is my hug big enough? Hard to imagine loving anyone as much as my sweet bug. But those mind-blowing essays will be written on the other blog because this blog is about the stuff that isn’t kid although I am realizing that it is all me–a great big swirl of a kid and chickens and gardens and dog and cats and running and sewing and eating and creating and perhaps bug and dig need to unite into one blog so I can stop having conversations in my head about whether a post is appropriate for one or the other…anyway. I am pregnant! Turns out I am rather fertile. Holy shit!
Sunday we took a lazy morning walk after washing at least a million dishes (I gotta get my hands on one of them dishwashers).
I cleaned out the garage (I swear I slept better that night what with all of my sharpie labeled boxes and whatnot. Plus I found things like my cabbage patch dolls, Tara Nicole and Chelsea Leigh) and made two cobblers in the afternoon, one with berries for Andy and Margot and one with apples for my ladyfriends to share over dinner and non-alcoholic beer. Well, they actually drank white wine and IPA. The apple cobbler needed more sugar in the filling and I actually think the cakey topping is just better with dark fruit. The original recipe calls for plums and ooh daddy is it delish with plums.
cornmealy batter for fruit cobbler:
2 cup flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks cold butter, cubed
3/4 cup milk
Mix together the dry ingredients and then cut in the butter until crumbly. Slowly add milk and stir. Form little patties in your hands and place on top of sugary fruit. Cook on 375 degrees for an hourish.
I am not nauseous or anything but avocado completely freaked me out tonight. Andy had to scrape it off of my salad and leave no trace or I was afraid I would hurl. Also, I do look about how I did with bug at four or five months which is totally weird because I am like six weeks pregnant. The bean will emerge on or near bug’s second birthday. Oh the wild ride. Bug is just so fun so a little sibling for her will be grand. As long as the sibling is less twitchy than the chickens. She’s not so sure about the chickens.
How was your weekend? Do you have some news to share, big or small? Do tell.
39 Comments
the crust was perfect, you silly nut. and so are you!
Super congrats! Pass some of the fertility this way my dear. Can’t wait to see how this unfolds.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!! You will have more than enough love to share between bug and the new little bean. The love multiplies.
oh, so much to say about this post: and laughing at lera’s comment on love “multiples.” maybe it IS twins. ha. thought of you yesterday during a newborn shoot. joy, joy, joy, baby. and the bonnet? hello, perfection. she makes me laugh with the chickens. she is simply a doll. love the backyard dinner. and the cabbage patch kids. you never forget your cp name. (gwyneth williamina. and a boy: dennis elroy. and then a string of crappy handmade ones sewn from nylon scraps stretched over balled up socks. not the cool dig-this-chick kind of homemade. like nursing home homemade, and i will never forgive myself for the attitude i gave my mom when i couldn’t hide my disdain for its hideousness upon opening it christmas morning) and my favorite is always any talk of that whole balance act on self/hobbies/mom/etc. because, i always try to balance my posts too and never want it to be all about lainey. or too much about me. because life isn’t all about lainey. or all about me. it’s this constant state of balance. and then i figure why stress…it all works out, just as you say. a rolling ball of motherhood and wifehood and hobbies and cooking and fashion and challenges, etc. our loves in life are innately intertwined. life, eh? oh, look. i comment-whored. sorry for the ramble. congratulations again, you beautiful mama, you. xoxo
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! I saw you when you were newly pregs! Congrats, doll! I’m sure bug will LOVE to be a big sister. She can show the little one how to boss around those pecky chickens.
Also, I will try your cobbler topping. We’re doing a lot of those now that berry season is starting and apple season is closing. Thanks 🙂
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This comment has been removed by the author.
OH BOY!!….OH GIRL!!…..SUPER Gram ascends again! Nici, we have talked about the “enough love to go around thing” and believe me when I tell you, love is one thing you will NEVER be short of…(just wait until you become a grandmother!)
Love Bug in the bonnet, armed with a shovel….I don’t blame her I hated my Auntie Jane’s chickens!
As for her being a big sissy…she will be a star! She will by then know how to thwart off those hens for her baby….I can see it now, Bossy Bea kicks Bossy P’s ass ;0}!
So here’s to another healthy & beautiful birth…I am with you every step of the way.
xo, Mom
PS….thanks for being so obliging and having this babe so close to my birthday….now I can have a triple celebration!!!!
Oh by the way…I musch prefer turnips over parsnips.
xo
Congratulations girl! You have worked out all of the life adjustment kinks with Bug. You will be ready to go when that little babe shows up. So turnips taste more like a carrot and parsnips are more bland like a potato? I always get them confused! I like to cube up a parsnip, a rutabaga, and a turnip toss them with fresh herbs of choice and olive oil and roast them hot and fast in the oven. Yummy! ps Your dinner party looked divine. Love the bonnet.
Awe-some.
xo
Heather
congratulations mama and daddy and big sister … and grandmas!
it’s amazing to watch your heart expand … truly … you don’t feel it … it just happens.
i felt so guilty for feeling that i couldn’t give cora everything that i felt like i gave stella … but realized that … stella was giving herself too … and that was just as important … if not more.
honestly, there are so many differences in raising two … but good differences and we just adjust and perform accordingly … that’s what mamas do.
and you do it so well.
I’m over the moon excited that the nice weather has come to Montana… now I can consider coming back for a spell.
Bug is adorable in that bonnet!
Congratulations!! I think with every child, you grow another heart that is brimming full, so don’t worry about the love part. Did you ever imagine you could love someone so much before you birthed your bug? It just gets better because you provide your bug with her own little sib to love and have a life-long relationship with separate from anyone else’s relationship. It really is the gift that keeps on giving. As far as the attention-division thing, it’s tricky, but you adjust and so does everyone else. The great thing about having kids close together is that the first kid doesn’t remember life without the second kid, so after some adjustment, it becomes like it was always meant to be that way and your bug won’t remember it any other way. Oh happy day for you!
P.S. I love turnips and hide them in delicious stews all winter long. Everyone in my house thinks they are a fancy new potato.
Many congrats to you and your family. Been lurking for a while and this seemed like a prime opportunity to step out and congratulate. Best wishes for a happy and healthy pregnancy.
Congrats again. I vote for combining both blogs, but then, I’m a fan of simplicity. And while I’m not inclined to subscribe to a blog that is solely about mothering and children, if those stories are just part of the big picture that is you and your fabulous writing, I would be happy to read them. I enjoy your mentions of bug here, and I would welcome hearing about the bean. I’m sure they will be two peas in a pod. Ha!
Beyond that, I would love some gardening advice from you. I was going to post my question here, but I think I’ll go write up a quick blog post instead ….
Congratulations! I also think you could go for it and combine the blogs (partly in the name of streamlining and making things easier for yourself).
I am an auntie for the first time and seeing them go through this transition to motherhood reminds me what a big transition it was . . . but then everything gets re-integrated and I love what you said about that. It’s all part of the amazing woman you are.
Here’s to ease in pregnancy and all the rest. Bug seems like such a mellow kid that she will just roll with whatever comes next.
And I love the bonnet. xo!
gooo nici! i’m excited to see the expanding family. also i need to see the current kid again before she gets much bigger. this summer, perhaps? as for my news, i found a place in DC for the summer! it’s in an area called columbia heights, which i hear is cool. plus there is a parking space, and chaos can come! yay!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!! what a happy time!!!!!! i am so with ya on the combining/merging the two blogs only because i KNOW that i would have mind arguments in my head at all times bout what to post where…then again, you are like a rockstar to. you do so much…so well. it’s inspiring!!!
LOVE the dinner club idea and pic AND epic italian gravy…you had me at epic! YUM!
i have two babies. they are two years, two weeks apart in age. 2&4
you will ADORE the difference. i, too remember feeling that i could not love another baby as much as my baby girl. i felt that way up until the moment they put him in my arms. it’s all over from there:)
so excited for your family!
ha. i just read kelle’s comment…
annie inga…my cp doll’s name. had to share bc i secretly thought that all my little friend’s were jealous that my doll’s name was WAAAY cooler than their cp doll. LOL!
Well I particularly love the pics of Margot and the chicken. But I have got to comment on that bonnet. Number one, I love the word bonnet. Say it to yourself a few times in a row, bonnet, bonnet bonnet. I vow to use that word more often. Secondly, that bonnet looks so cute on Margot. She will be eternally grateful to you for protecting her gorgeous skin from the sun. As for the shovel, is Margot on doggy pooh duty? I am envious that you have had a chance to dine outside already and the gravy looks like it turned out just fine without Joes secret recipe. I must see you soon, Joan
Congratulations on your second pregnancy! I go between wanting to get pregnant right this second and wanting to enjoy one more summer, just me and my girl. I am delighted that you continue to share your story. 🙂
well a positive pregnancy test! that is fugging awesome. congrats to you, andy and lil bug. my news: i had a great job interview yesterday with a company that i believe will be a great fit for me/them. keep your fingers crossed. xoox, ljb
Congratulations!! This is fantastic news 🙂 I had a feeling Bug would get a sibling sooner than later! Woot!
Yah yah yah! So excited for you 🙂 I can’t to experience the whole pregnancy thing too!
AND Can’t wait for all the new baby posts!
Congrats Nici!! I am so happy for you, Andy and little Bug!! We will be trying in a couple months (when Ashley turns two in July), so we may get to be pregnant together. Congrats!!
Congrats on being prego! Although, I think you are kind of crazy to do it so soon, but living in Utah, most people pop out a babe every year or so, so I must be the crazy one! I just like the idea of enjoying each child a bit more than the chaos that comes with having two under 3. Thanks for sharing the cute bonnet! I love it and can’t wait to get one for my daugher. Cheers!
Congrats sweetie! So excited for your family and for Bug to be a big sista’!
what a lovely post, and wonderful news for all of you.
i have wondered about that very question, “how could i love anyone as much?”
what i have heard from moms of more than one child is that the love expands. especially when you witness the love between the siblings. guess you get to find out.
No more maraca?? hahaha, now it’s that great turqoise spade.
I love the reversible bonnet.
So Richy’s outside building the first of our raised beds. We decided to use concrete blocks and they are stunning. You’ll love them.
Are you guys going to find out the sex of your new child again?
So Exciting Nici! Congratulations to the whole family. Wishing you the best and brightest this Spring. Look forward to looking you up this summer when we pass through during the wedding season. If you find yourselves down south in the Tetons be sure to let us know, we’re just a heartbeat off the highway in Tetonia. Lots of love. – Claire + Luke + Pups + Chickens galore.
Shucks, thanks for all the well wishes. I haven’t yet decided if I will combine the blogs…perhaps with the bean arrives and time is less, s/he will make the decision for me!
Congratulations Nici! And Andy and Margot…
I’m so happy for you…and I believe you are one person who will be able to add another child to your busy and loving schedule seamlessly.
I keep meaning to drop in here and leave a big shmushy congratulatory note and shucks, I’m late! But congratulations. I loved how you told us all: surrounded by gardening and food and friends and all of those elements of your life. Beautiful!
ah,ms. dig…have been meaning to write to you since i first began your blog and thank you for sharing. your images/words never fail to bring a smile. similar lives, you & i. i have 2 girlies…4 & 2, and, for the last 4 years, have been weaning myself of the material/corporate world & plunging head-first into the rich, deep, fertile world of my grandma…gardening, baking, creating, preserving, all under the great canopy of the Big Sky. so, anyway…thank you! i look forward to the next.
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