Wednesday, October 29, 2008

It's War

The ants. It's all about the ants now. We are so tired of those little monsters. We must be on top of the largest ant hill in California. They're on the iron while I'm ironing. They're in the linen closet. They're on couch doing God knows what. Before we even moved in they were all over Theron's shag carpet and we assumed they'd move on, but no. Theron leaves towels and blankets all over the floor to walk on like pavers on a garden path. He thinks the ants can't climb them. This poor kid hates bugs so much it's like every nightmare come true. He could write his own Goosebumps stories - Episode One: Who Left That Juice Box In My Room???!!!!
Sometimes they go away and Theron thinks he's safe in the bathtub, pitting Shrek against Spiderman, when the ants come out of the grout. We're hoping this will really teach him a lesson about keeping his room clean but it's a slooooow process. Today, Episode Two: Who Left Those Wrappers On My Bed???!!!
My assistant, Sophie, is the sweetest girl ever and she loves all creatures. She will tell you heart breaking stories about giant African millipedes. Last week at lunch Ozge said she was trying to scare ants off without killing them. Sophie said, "Just kill them, they're awful!" In my opinion if Sophie says kill them, they have to die. Ashley has laid out every over the counter poison available and this week they tried to kill him back. Monday morning Ashley went to take a shower and found a paper plate with pizza remains in the bathroom trash can crawling with ants (Episode Three: Wha????) He rushed it to the backyard, naked, and while running back he sliced open his big toe on the cement. I thought he needed stitches but he heals well.
I'm sad about what this has done to me. When I wash dishes I enjoy pouring hot water on them. I like to smash them and watch as they run for their lives. I think I'm going to come back and find they were scared off by all the many dead, but they keep doing what they were doing, looking for baloney or eggs. And then I feel even LESS sorry for them and the killing continues.
Oh well.
Next, on the list, pantry moths.

Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Better Late Than Never?

Last week I went for escargot and Kir royales with Mike and Erik and I returned a book to Mike that I've had for 27 years. It is a hardback first edition of Hotel New Hampshire. I know at first I kept it because I liked it. Then I probably kept it because I moved around a lot and always forgot about it. Then I kept it because I wanted to and figured he forgot about it. Then we moved and I found it again and thought, oh well. I probably only read it once in the 80's anyway, then the movie ruined it for me. Many years ago Mike lost virtually everything he owned - the story is best told by him - he had more books, and records, and expensive clothes than anyone I knew. So he started over, and again his house is full of books. It was our goal to read EVERYTHING. At one time he had money and now he has so little but he and Erik have a motto: just buy the book. Giving someone back a book he thought was lost with everything else, giving it back to someone who loves books - I felt guilty for keeping it so long, but my heart hurt more to see the joy it brought. Then he opened the book, which I hadn't done, and pressed inside was a boutoniere from some long ago school dance.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Halloweens Past

Here are a couple of costumes back when I had time to make stuff and Theron had no opinion about what he was. This is him at 3 months. He is a bee. This costume was made by cutting up one of daddy's t-shirts. The stripe is a strip of one sleeve slipped over the top of a yellow onesie - no sewing. The hat is the other sleeve that I sewed across the top and twisted the corners with yarn. The wings are backer rod with trash-bag plastic.
This is the bee with his bottle
The next year he was a chia pet. The costume base is a long sleeve shirt and pajama pants from a discount store, that I dyed with Rit, to be the terracotta body. The hat and the body are simple rectangles that I knit in a garter stitch, using a Rowan wool tweed and green eyelash yarn. The eyelash yarn is knit with the wool every third row. The closure at the bottom was a snap closure I cut out of an old onesie.



This year he wants to be a pirate. In order to get an eyepatch I had to buy a moustache and beard. Of course he had to try it out and now I find the beard, or piece of it? everywhere - stuck to the chair, stuck to my car keys, stuck to the kitchen cabinets. If it gets stuck to the trash can that's it.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Done!


I finished the quilt this weekend and we presented it to Steven today. We all think it is the best one ever. More photos at Flickr.

Friday night I went on my own to see Michael's new play. I don't think I'll write the name because this is a family blog, but it was soooo funny. He wrote and starred in it, Erik did all the art and there were some of Erik's paintings in the lobby, too.
Last night were the Santa Ana winds that woke me up at 3. I laid there in fear as Ash slept. The winds were so loud I felt like we were on a ship in the eye of the storm. Theron got up at 4 and got in bed with us. He said, "It sounds like the ocean!". I agreed. Ash couldn't understand what I was afraid of.
A partial list includes:
- pinecones being flung at such high speeds they start breaking windows
- A tree falling on the car
- The house being wrenched from the foundation and landing on a witch
- The reason it sounds like we're in a storm on the ocean is because we are
I was hoping the wind would calm down by morning and if anything it was worse and I overheard the weatherman saying it has something to do with warm air and the wind rushing to the ocean. EEeeeiiii! I drove Theron to school and at the lot in the park, where we park everyday, he asked to sit on the cannon. (he loves to do that) I said, "What?! Look outside!" and we watched what looked like the result of several firehoses spraying dirt in every direction. Right next to an uprooted tree.
"Oh", he said.
p.s. Ashley says he can sleep through wind because he is from Oklahoma! He also says there is no way pine cones can become deadly projectiles.

Thursday, October 09, 2008

Cute!

How 'bout some links today?
p.s. Mom or Dad, does anyone know what happened to my teacup collection???

Booty juggler game : By 4Mations
p.s. the 7th was our two year blog-a-versary. Time goes by so fast...

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Apple Pudding

This is for Odile who has too many apples, from the book, Great British Cooking: A Well Kept Secret by Jane Garmey. I copied it from a library book 20 years ago and it never fails to satisfy. It looks good and tastes divine.

APPLE CINNAMON PUDDING

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup light cream
4 oz butter
1 3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
4 med sized apples

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

Beat eggs and 1 cup of sugar. Bring cream and butter to just below boiling point over a low heat. Remove and pour onto the egg and sugar. Fold in flour, baking powder and cinnamon.

Grease a square 9" x 9" baking pan. Pour in the mixture and arrange the apples on top. Cover with the remaining sugar and bake for about 20 minutes or until firm (I always seem to end up baking it for closer to 40 minutes).

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

Project Time


A few weeks ago Ashley saw me cutting fabric and asked what it was for.

"Your worst nightmare", I said.

"Which one?"

The baby quilt nightmare, of course! This one is for our head curator/interim director whose baby boy is due in less than 2 weeks. I've just started this Flickr group to show the various patches. There are only two in there right now but I'll be adding as they come in.