happy halloween

(I didn't get a good picture of my costume, so here's the one they took when I wore it to work)

updates and other mumbo jumbo

• Pregnancy. I am 25 weeks. Depending on who you believe my due date is sometime between February 8 and 14th. And...it's a girl. My Aunt Cari, who is one of my very most favorite people in the whole world, loved being pregnant. I don't. One more thing for me to work on to try and be more like her.
• Going organic. I try, but am far, far from doing it all the way. I try to avoid the ones that are supposedly worse, the "dirty dozen." Pretty much it just means that I don't buy as many fruits and vegetables as I used to, which has its own consequences. We're trying.
• Ella. I often call her "my Ella" and she has taken to calling herself "your Ella." Such as, "You want to share your pillow with your Ella?"
• Room swap. I've decided to move Ella to the guest room and keep Ella's room for the new baby. But I don't think Ella is ready to move to a toddler bed, so I'm going to move her crib with her. I think I'm going to buy a pack n' play with bassonette feature for the new baby. I think I'm going to paint Ella's new room a deep blue (something like La Fonda Deep Blue) and use one of these two rugs. Which one do you like better?
  Field Poppy (in green)
  
  
  
Modern Love

• Posture. I hate even talking about this. I was doing so well, and now I'm not. And the watermelon in my belly isn't helping. 2009 was supposed to be the year of the straight back. Then 2010. Is there any hope for 2011?
• This is my new favorite potato casserole recipe.
• This is my new favorite pumpkin cupcake recipe.
• Ella got these boots as an early Christmas present. I think they may be the cutest thing I've seen in a very long time.

girls' week

Ryan's been traveling more lately, and while some parts of it aren't so bad {you don't really have to cook if you don't want to} it gets kind of lonely. So I talked my friend Thayer into coming out to Utah for the week and living it up with me and Ella. She brought her daughter Lilly who is one week younger than Ella, and we had a great time.

Thanks "Yi-yi and Yi-yi's mommy". Next time we'll brave the flight out to your neck of the woods.

pedicures

Draper Temple

(yep, I'm definitely pregnant, and look even bigger so next to that Twig)

lots of ring around the rosie

Thayer did most of the heavy lifting

at the park

{watching another child get scolded}

Apple Cake

I've been craving apple cake lately have been digging around for recipes. I remembered this one from the Costco magazine that I made two or three times last year.

No, it is not good for you. Yes, it is absolutely delicious. I also tried it with pears, and maybe even liked it better.

Caramel-Glazed Apple Cake

1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 eggs
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
5 Granny Smith apples
1 1/4 cup chopped pecans and walnuts
2 1/4 tsp vanilla

Caramel Glaze
4 T butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 325. Butter and flour and a 9x13 pan (Or 2 8x8 pans).
Beat sugars and oil until well blended. Add eggs one at a time. Sift dry ingredients together and add to egg mixture until just blended. Stir in apples, nuts, and vanilla. Pour in pan(s).

Bake for 50-75 minutes (mine was about 60). Let cool in pan while preparing glaze.
Glaze: Melt better over low heat. Stir in sugars over med-low and cook for 2 minutes. Add cream and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. Stir constantly.

Poke holes in cake with skewer or toothpick. Pour glaze over the cake. Serve warm and top with whipped cream or ice cream.

Eat. Enjoy. Crave.

ella at 26 months

• Funny things she says....What that silly daddy is doing?.....What that silly daddy was thinking?....That mom's on a mission!
• She is incredibly interested in understanding and being understood. If we are talking to each other, or to another adult, and she doesn't understand what is being said she will interrupt and say, "What he/she/you talking 'bout?" By the same token, if we can't understand what she is saying she will come up with another way to express herself. The other day she kept saying she wanted to see the _____. I had no clue what she was saying. She repeated herself a few times, then said, "That foldy (cold) stuff in the freezer. [Unintelligible word]!" She wanted to see the 'snow' in the freezer (which had been left open and got a bit frosty). It amazes me.
• She has no interest in potty training. We ask her if she wants to go in the potty and she calmly responds, "No. In my per."
• She associates each letter with someones name. When you ask her the letters she tells you "C for Chris," "T for Taylor" "M for Mommy," etc. She just learned her letters and was very disappointed that we didn't know anyone for "V."
• She thinks we know everything. "I don't know" is not an acceptable answer. "Tell me!" she says.
• She loves to hear stories. "Tell me a story about Ma Janet/Mommy/Pa/Ella/Zeus/Daddy..." is a frequent request.
• A few weeks ago she saw this with Ma Sue. "That's my drink!" she said. Needless to say, she came home with it.

• She's gotten much better about playing independently. She will carry on conversations with her stuffed animals. My favorite is when she says "I sooorrrryy. You tan't have that. It's otay."
• She wants to know "Who is on your phone?" whenever you are talking. She doesn't stop until she knows "Who it is you talking to?"