DIY Christmas part II

Even Ralphie is getting in the spirit....

Some of the things I did like the frosted candle, came from the current issue of Martha Stewart Living. I liked the idea of frosted candles, so I conviced the pharmacist to sell me an unusually large supply of epsom salts (she was convinced I need it for constipation....) and went to work. The bells and cluser bow on the spray on the front door are also adapted from MSL. I´m not finished crafting yet, but I do have to work in between projects. So stayed tuned, more to come!

The DIY Christmas

My Do it yourself Christmas. No store-bought wreaths or garland. Thanks to our neighbor who cut down some trees in his yard I had lots of greenery to work with. The result isn´t perfect, but I´m pretty happy with the way things turned out. I do think that the garland I make for my mother at home out of cedar looks much prettier and turns out much better, but the greenery was free and I didn´t have a source of fresh cedar to work with. Maybe next year.

HomeGoods StyleScope - I'm a Country Classic

HomeGoods StyleScope - I'm a Country Classic

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The yard

Before I´m off to frolic in the waves I thought I´d post some new pics of our yard. No commentary, just pictures. It might not look like this when I get back, but I know my husband will do his best.




This is not our yard, but it´s kind of the way I´d like the path to our front door to look in a few years.

Hydrangeas!!!

Ok, I have an obcession with flowers. I like tulips and daffodils, I love roses and lavender, but I am completely and totally obcessed with hydrangeas. Both my wedding boquets had hydrangeas in them. One was blue hydrangeas, and the other used green/whitish hydrangeas. They were gorgeous, and maybe I can find the digital pics to share one day. But obcession aside I dragged Mr. Peach along Schloss Zuschendorf in Pirna to see the hydrangeas. There will be a big hydrangea exhibit in a couple of weeks but I wont be here to see it, so we decided to try and catch a glimpse. I forget to write down the names of these, but it´s not super important for now. Next year I´ll be back, notpad in hand writing down my favorites..... more to come on that.

Long time no hear

It´s been a long time since I updated, so I´ve decided to give you a short chronology in pictures. I´ve had several baking endeavors (see the lovely Strawberry Shortcake from the cover of Living July 2007)

cupcakes for my friend Andrea´s birthday (half chocolate, half vanilla with Swiss merangue buttercream frosting)
Then a fourth of July bash that somehow did not get sufficient documentation as I found when Iwent to upload the pics. We had Carolina bbq pulled pork, potato salad, cole slaw, tomatoes, angel food cake, patriotic icecream compotes, and lots of other yummy things including home made buns.
The chicken drumsticks with cilantro and lime garnish.
The drinks minus the ice tea. yes, that´s an old washtub filled with beer, cokes and ice.
Some of the guests chowing down. Unfortunately you can´t see the decorations that I worked so hard on, but they are there.
Then I decided to make my sister a hostess gift since I´ll be staying with her for a few days. As far as I know she doesn´t have a tea cozy, so I made this one.
And half a dozen napkins to match with fancy stiching
An apron to serve the tea in
and here I am modeling the apron. I copied a vintage one my grandmother had made and changed a few things. This one is a bit fancier than what she did--I decided to use a different material for the ruffle. Has something a bit maidy now. Oh well.
And a new rose in my yard. A yellow one that was supposed to be white. Oh well, guess nobody is perfect!

And last but not least, I´ve spent quite a bit of time making jelly out of blueberries, strawberries and sour cherries. And no, I´m not done. I´m half way through re-doing an old nightstand. So stay tuned, maybe I´ll finish it before I head home!

Ring around the rosey!

Peace!

She´s a beauty, isn´t she? I´m so glad my mother suggested this rose. Just a little info about this lovely courtesy of wikipedia:

The Peace rose is the most famous and successful garden rose of all time. Over one hundred million plants had been sold, as of 1992. It is a Hybrid Tea rose with very large flowers and a light yellow to cream color. It is very hardy and resistant to disease making it popular in gardens as well as in the floral trade (Beales).

It was developed by French horticulturist Francis Meilland in the years 1935 to 1939. When Meilland foresaw the German invasion of France he sent cuttings to friends in Italy, Turkey, Germany, and the United States to protect the new rose. The rose became known as 'Peace' in the following way. Early 1945 Meilland wrote to Field Marshal Alan Brooke (later Viscount Alanbrooke), the principal author of the master strategy that won Second World War, to thank him for his key part in the liberation of France and to ask if Brooke would give his name to the rose. Brooke declined saying that, though he was honored to be asked, his name would soon be forgotten and a much better and more enduring name would be "Peace".

The name "Peace" is a trade name; its formal cultivar name is Rosa 'Madame A. Meilland'. The adoption of the trade name "Peace" was publicly announced in the United States on 29 April 1945 by the introducers, Messrs Conard Pyle Co.. This was the very day that Berlin fell, officially considered the end of the Second World War in Europe. Later that year Peace roses were given to each of the delegations at the inaugural meeting of the United Nations in San Francisco, each with a note which read:

"We hope the 'Peace' rose will influence men’s thoughts for everlasting world peace".

Peter Beales, English rose grower and expert, said in his book Roses:

"'Peace', without doubt, is the finest Hybrid Tea ever raised and it will remain a standard variety forever".

And here she is just starting to open. She looks so much darker and brighter here. Once she fully opens and has been in the bright sun she fades to a much subtler yellow with just the slightest hint of pink. I much prefer her in the first picture.

And this is an almost spent blossom on my climbing rose, Constance Spry. I like the smell of Constance, and when the blossoms have just opened they are gorgeous. Unfortunately I was a bit late getting a picture, and since this is her first year in my yard she´s still very small. I´m sure that wont last long! She is almost ready to be tied to the trellis, and I can´t wait to see what she does next year. This year she had about 8 blossoms which wasn´t too bad for a new rose. It´s a pity she only blooms once a year. Sigh.


An last but not least, Schneewitchen. I like the pure white this rose has and the clusters of blooms. The bush is full despite this being its first year in my garden and I am thrilled.

Now if only Empress Josephine and the Pink Panther would bloom...they have buds, so I´m sure it wont be too much longer before I share pictures of them along with my other climbing rose New Dawn. Until then, happy gardening!

Pizza, Pizza!

I´m a big fan of pizza, just not frozen ones. I realized that I was hungry and that there was nothing in the fridge that appealed to me or could really pass as lunch, but I had some bell peppers, red onions, a tomatoe, black olives and arugula growing in the garden. I even had some grated pizza cheese and some block parmesan! And yeast that wasn´t expired, whole wheat flour and white flour (I like to mix half and half). So I decided to make myself a pizza from scratch and I think the result was pretty darn good. It certainly hit the spot and used up some things in the fridge that needed using and potentially helped to keep the arugula plant at bay....that Arugula is a post all by itself...

April showers bring May flowers...

Actually it didn´t rain a whole lot in April, but my garden is growing. Here are a few shots of our yard from May. When my parents were here in April I planted six rose bushes. This picture is of my 2.99€ mystery rose. I don´t know what kind of rose it is, and the tag said only that it was a pink rose. I think it´s lovely, just wish I knew which rose it was!
About three weeks ago the husband got a bee in his bonnet that we needed to have grass and needed to have it now. To appease him I let him get sod put down for the area around the roses/terrace. I think it has turned out well, and the husband is thrilled. He´s planning more....he´s bought the most amazing lawn mower to mow it with. I wish I could give you the technical details, but I can´t. I´m sure you are heart broken not to know.
Our predecessor had lots of iris growing in the yard, and I dug them all up just before the house was built and put them here in this raised bed where they have stayed. I´ll be moving them in July or August to the front of the house to go along the fence. we are planning to tear out the raised beds and the raised terrace behind. You´ll understand why in a minute.
Some more of my lovely iris with said raised terrace in the background. It is ugly as home made sin and has to go. I cannot wait to have the open space to do something with. The husband is shooting for the fall as demolition time. In the mean time he´s collecting bids to have it torn down. The previous owner worked in steel and concrete construction and the terrace has some serious rebar in it. Talk about reinforced concrete....
And last but not least, my lovely boxwoods! I transplanted them and in this photo they look really nice. At the moment they are looking a little peaked because of the sun and transplant stress/shock, but I´m hoping they make a full recovery.More to come later. I´m sure after tomorrow´s trip to the nursery I´ll have more to show!

lunch

So I´ll have a sub with turkey coldcuts, some unpasteurized cheese, feta maybe? Hold the greens please cause we don´t need that folic acid. A large diet coke, maybe a double espresso to go with that, and do you have cosmopolitans on the menu? No, ok, well how about a red bull with some vodka. Redbull but no Vodka you say, ok I guess I´ll settle for that bottle of prosecco you have. No, nothing else that I can think of. Well maybe a ciggy, but wait, I don´t smoke so I guess I skip that. Yes, that will be all, and can you make it to go? Great.

Lilac Land

So I have a thing for lilacs, and obviously the previous owner of our lot did too. The scent is positively intoxicating and the flowers are simply divine. Too bad they don´t last in a vase very long. Sigh. Unfortunately the lilacs are fading, but the roses have lots of buds. This picture below is the beginning of my rose garden which isn´t quite finished. I´ll take pictures again when it´s a little further along. So here are some of the lilacs behind our house (taken from the bathroom window).

And more lilacs....I also have lots of yellow iris which are about to bloom and a pretty hot pink/red peony with lots of buds. I can´t wait for my peonies to open. I think I like them even better than my lilacs...but then again, I love all my flowers.

It´s Spring!!

And I have been neglecting my blog in favor of gardening with my parents. The parents left this morning, and now I am alone with my garden. I´m sure the neighbors will be disappointed that the progress will slow now that it´s just me.

My project for today was to sow some seeds in peat pots for radishes and zuchinni. If I´m still motivated later, I´ll plant the sweet peas in some pots and get them started in a sunny window sill. As the Germans would say "immer mit der Ruhe" so I will be taking it slow.

I promise to put some pictures up of my accomplishments. I should probably find some before pictures or it might not be so obvious what has been accomplished....31 tonnes of dirt and lots of shade-loving plants, roses and boxwoods.

"The Latest Dirt"

There are 15 tons of it in my driveway waiting to be wheelbarrowed to the front yard. It´s quite a picture, really. When the digital camera has recharged I will be sure to take pictures to share. In the mean time you will have to imagine what 15 tons looks like. I´m thinking it looks like a heck of a lot of work for one person to do (that one person being my dear husband), but he is sure that he can indeed "hack" it. We´ll see. I´m predicting that by Sunday he will have called someone to come help, or ordered a bull dozer to come push it around. At any rate, I´m pretty sure that I would be useless at moving it. I suspect that after about 5 or 6 wheelbarrow loads I´d be done for the day. But maybe this is my personal challenge to build new muscles? Not sure. Will have to debate that. Must go stare at said pile and wheelbarrow for a while before making a decision. I´m pretty sure my arms are like jelly or would be after a few rounds. Sad, I know.

Fertility ramblings

I know that my blog is sort of a misnommer at this point, but I promise I will get around to talking about my emerging garden, eventually.

Sitting outside at a local cafe today while enjoying the sunshine, a piece of Schwarzwälder Torte and a Latte, it suddenly dawned on me that today is March the fourth....I found out exactly a year ago that I was pregnant. Isn´t that just fine and dandy.

It also came to me that really every month has some sort of significance in my ttc journey. I´ll start at the beginning so you can get that nice chronology.

August 2007: I started PNVs for my upcoming ttc journey.
September 2007: Went to gynecologist to have my hormone implant removed and talk ttc with her.
November 2007: Got my first BFP and shortly there after had my first miscarriage.
February 2008: DH and I managed to get in the mood on Valentine´s Day despite the stress from our impending move to new home....
March 4, 2008: Second BFP!! (I was elated)
April 16, 2008: Miscarried for my second time and had emergency d&c
June 2008: had horrible cramping and spotting, got BFP and told the next day from new doc. that if I had been pregnant, it was over.
July 2008: my would be EDD from first pregnancy
September 2008: visit with geneticist and diagnosis of Leiden Factor V--now we have something that can be treated.
November 7, 2008: My would be EDD from second pregnancy
December 5th: BFP number four....
December 24, 2008: miscarriage from BFP number four--now if that isn´t a great way to celebrate Christmas, I don´t know what is....
February 2009: possible EDD from BFP number three....
August 15, 2009: EDD from BFP number four.

So I guess it´s not really every month since January, May and October don´t have any goings on--yet.... Maybe if you ask me in a year I´ll have a different story to tell.

I´ve come to decide that getting a sticky BFP must be like rolling dice. Some people get lucky and roll a six straight off, and others of us have to keep trying , and trying, and trying. So I guess that means that eventually I´ll get a sticky BFP? How many more rolls to go, I wonder.

PS: I bought a bunch of primroses and potted daffodils for my front steps today. Maybe I´ll take a picture for you to admire. In the fall I´ll be planting the bulbs and primroses in the garden. There you have it, my Carolina garden is coming to life.

Streaks

Looking in the mirror the other day I realized that it was time for some streaks....bye bye roots and hello color!

This morning I called my very affordable stylist and asked when her next free appointment was. The stars must have been properly alligned because she told me I could come in at 1.30 TODAY!!

Shortly before one I hopped in the car and drove to the bank to get some cash (my very affordable lady doesn´t take debit cards) before heading to her salon. At 1:30 on the dot she started cutting, and it wasn´t too long before she had a nice pile of dry ends on the floor. I decided to go a bit shorter than last time and have more layers.

After the cut it was time to get the streaks done and catch-up on my celebrity gossip (hello gala and Bild der Frau) while sipping a nice Latte Machiatto. The time flew by, and now I´m all caught-up on who wore what dress to the Oscars, who is doing whom, who is not doing whom, etc. Very valuable info...Then it was time for my favorite part of the visit--the head massage!! Yes, I pay extra for her to massage my scalp and shoulders for 10 minutes, and it´s worth every cent of the 4.50 it costs.

Finally, Beatrice was done and I was tired of sitting in the chair (my back was killing me) so I paid and headed home. Here are the results (you´ll have to excuse the quality-taking pics of yourself is hard to do even with the timed-exposure):

BOTB

In case you don´t know, that´s babies on the brain... you didn´t think I would stop posting about that, did you?

Yup, I´ve got babies on the brain--four of them to be exact. After three miscarriages and a chemical, it´s hard not to think about babies all the time. I would love to have a baby, but I don´t know if I will. I haven´t given up hope yet, but I know that there is a chance that it wont work out.

I´ve made an appointment to speak to a specialist at the Uni clinic, and I´m contemplating doing some TCM. After reading Dr. Lesley Regan´s book, "Miscarriage, what every woman needs to know" I have lots of questions to ask the doctor. I hope she can answer them.

In the mean time, I´ve got babies on the brain.

Randomness

I saw this on another IN´s blog and thought it was really cool, so here it is. The ones in bold are things I´ve done. Feel free to take it for your blog, too.

1. Started my own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched lightning at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown my own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors (some of them, anyway)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught myself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had my portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check (once, and it wasn't my fault!)
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Ridden an elephant

Odds and Ends

So today has been filled with doing odds and ends. I´ve finally put the x-mas decoration in their boxes (they were piled on the dining table awaiting their move to the attic) and done some laundry, putzing, walking/slipping around on the icey paths, and just hanging with my DH. Today has been a good day. I´ve made it all day without crying, and I have sort of a plan for my grieving. My therapist suggested that I might want to find some way or something to remember my children by, so that I could grieve for them and begin to heal. I think I´ve hit on something to do, and already found some pieces for it. I want to make quilt squares that can be hung as a wall-hanging in the nursery that represent each child. When I get it all thought out and started I´ll post some more about it. I think this will be a great way to remember them, and for any future children to know about them.

On that same front, my dermatologist (who´d thunk it) gave me a referal to a head doctor at the University clinic who specializes in high-risk pregancies and miscarriage, and happens to be participating in a study for recurrent miscarriage. I´ll be calling her tomorrow to make an appt. My derm said if I needed anything, she would be more than happy to call or write other referals. I can´t believe how great she was, and how understanding she was of my plight. WOW! Kudos to her.

My pity party

I know it´s the beginning of a new year, a new chance for new things, but I just can´t get in the spirit. You see 2008 ended on a less than happy note. On December 23rd my obgyn told me that this pregnancy "wasn´t it." And promptly on Christmas Eve those all too familiar cramps set in. I didn´t go to church like I had planned, but lay on the couch watching my sick little niece throw-up. I´m sure she would rather have spent her Christmas differently, too. While my husband chatted happily with his family on the phone I lay curled up in bed until he could come to comfort me. We lay together and cried. Actually he cried and I sobbed. After an interminably long night I got up feeling some better and took a shower only to finally pass a tiny sac. The sac the doctor couldn´t find on an ultrasound on the 23. For a moment I held it in my hand and relised that this was the beginnings of a child for whom I had had so many hopes and dreams. I know it seems odd for some people that after just a little more than 6 weeks you could have so many hopes and dreams. This child would have been born in the month of August just like her/his parents. This child had a name. This child was going to come home from the hospital in the dress her grandmother and great-grandmother made for her mother to come home from the hospital in, and if this child was to be a boy, then he was going to come home in a little sailor suite made by his mommy. This child was going to come home to a yellow nursery decorated with alligators (the cute plush kind) and his mommy´s beloved stars blanket. Instead the nursery is but a yellow room. Awaiting no child.
I hope you´ll understand if I don´t seem terribly upbeat and cheery this 2009.