November 2008 Archives

I voted this morning and though I never doubted that Obama would win, it's a relief to see the final results. Now I can focus on the truly important things like crafting.

Above is a dress that I made for Kumi's preschool auction that's happening on Friday. Apparently the school raises an astounding amount of money each year at their auction which helps offset the cost of the preschool itself. At $95 a month, it's considered one of the cheapest options in Seattle.

I arbitrarily decided that I had to make a doll with a matching dress as well and this is what she ended up looking like -- I think I'll call her Sascha.

I think she has that kind of eastern block babushka-dress thing going on. But definitely hip.

The toddler-sized dress is adorable when worn and doesn't look babushka-esque at all. My model was very reluctant to pose for me, however, so you'll have to take my word for it. I wonder how much the dress and doll will go for at the auction? I'm so curious to find out! I'll let you know after Friday.

We've recovered nicely from Halloween and Kumi's sleep schedule has actually improved now that we've gained an hour.

And now it's time to talk about cooking. I am a huge fan of Orangette. In particular, her dessert and dessert-ish recipes are superb and I keep going back for more. The above pear tart is an adaptation of her apple tart and it's the best tart I've ever had. I've made it three times in the last two weeks.

I urge you to try the recipe. It will make you feel cozy and content. It's really the perfect tart for the increasingly chilly fall weather.

Ta-daa! Finally a photo outside of the confines of our apartment! It's been lovely, crisp and sunny fall weather up until yesterday, when it started to rain with a vengeance. Luckily, the skies cleared up just in time for trick-or-treating.

It was a big day for the Koom. Her two best friends came over (the cutest bunch of grapes and the sweetest elephant ever) and much fun was had.

They ate and painted, and held hands and ran around in sheer delight. All of my pictures of them were blurry except this one. Excuse the lackluster quality -- the lighting was horrible due to our sad little halogen lamp that really belongs in a dorm room somewhere.

She really liked the bat costume and I was so pleased. I made the whole thing from scratch, including the dress (well OK, I didn't make the tights or the boots -- remember those great boots?) and though it all went really well and it came out better than I expected, it was a crazy week with illustration deadlines, extra preschool obligations and potty training. Ah, potty training. Don't get me started. All I have to say is thank goodness for steam cleaners. On top of everything else, the Koom was down with the flu AGAIN. We were a very a illin' family this last month.

But by the time Halloween rolled around, she was strutting about and showing off her wings. In the afternoon, we went up the hill in my neighborhood where all the businesses distribute candy every year on Halloween. It's about 10 blocks of madness with a gazillion kids and their parents descending upon the baskets of sweets.

Here she is demonstrating her killer wings to her favorite ladies at the bookstore:

She had her first ever lollipop, which I failed to capture on camera, but she definitely figured out the joys of candy.

27 months -- I can't believe it's been a whole year since she was a wee ladybug. I have high hopes that by the time she reaches her 28th month, the steam cleaner and soggy underwear and general discomfort that comes with potty training will be a thing of hazy memories...

Oh, and that adorable little hair clip that's keeping the bat ears attached to the Koom's head was a handmade gift from my talented friend -- thanks Sachi!