Bathroom Remodel

Last week, we started a bathroom remodel.  What, you say?  Didn't we just recently finish a kitchen remodel?  Well, our bathroom is just as seriously outdated and non-user friendly as our old kitchen.  Our building is Edwardian, built sometime in 1911.  Don't get me wrong, I love the old San Francisco architecture and detailing in our condo, but whoever previously "modernized" the bathroom obviously did not care about safety.

We had a light switch of death, located conveniently near the shower head.  It was the switch for the only light in the bathroom, so no way to avoid it.  Seriously, who puts a light switch near the shower head?  And the tub area is not tiled.  We have a D-ring shower curtain holder, which doesn't seem that bad in theory until you are taking a shower and are trying to turn around and grab for shampoo and the stupid shower curtain blows in and sticks to your body.  Ewwww.  The bathtub clogged regularly.  We have kept Roto-Rooter and Draino in business for the last couple of years.  And true to Edwardian form, our toilet is in a separate water closet.  Quaint, yes, and also a little gross and inconvenient when you think about it. 

So with future baby on the way, we figured that it was time to re-do the bathroom. We are replacing all the fixtures, tub and toilet, joining the water closet and bathroom, and shifting the orientation of the tub.  I can't wait to finally be able to take baths!  And to give future baby a lovely bath without worrying about the light switch of death or flaking paint. We did not get a designer or anything, and because we are trying to keep costs down and won't be replacing the ancient windows, and also because the area is just awkwardly configured no matter what, the remodeled bathroom won't be one of those "oooo, ahhhhh" reveals like you see on HGTV, but anything has got to be better than fearing electrocution while taking a shower.

Vine Stitch Scarf and Baby Surprise Jacket

I started this new scarf for my friend S. Pattern can be found here.

I was going to keep it as a surprise, but I suck at surprises, both as the recipient of a surprise and as a giver of a surprise. My husband finds it infuriating. I am that annoying person who says "Oh, you got me a gift? That's so great!" and then 5 minutes later will ask "Soooo, that gift, what is it?" and then ask again a day later, and the day after that, and the day after that - well, you get the picture. I think this has to do with my control freak/worry wart nature. I just don't like being taken by surprise, and I also dread that someone is going to hate a surprise that I plan for them, so I ruin it my checking in with them. Of course, I like to think that I am super sneaky about checking in, but in reality, I know I am not.

Anyway, this scarf is a very easy knit. You just need to know the knit stitch, how to slip a stitch and what passing a slipped stitch over another one means. There is only a 1 row repeat, but I think the results are lovely. It reminds me of fish-netting, but nicer (hmmm, I guess there are many that would not think fishnet is nice to begin with, but whatever). This scarf will be the beneficiary of a good soak and blocking so that the pattern will open up even more and look even lacier. I can't wait to finish this and send to S! Separately, I find the yarn choice extremely annoying. I bought Jo Sharp SoHo Summer DK Cotton at Churchmouse during my trip to Seattle. In fact, S and I chose it together. The color is muted and beautiful, like beachy gray skies, and it is soft with a nice sheen. However, this is the splittiest (is that even a word?) yarn I have EVER used. I mean, you look at this yarn wrong and it starts to split! I actually had to switch from the original pattern I had chosen for this yarn because of the splittiness. Overall, not sure I would buy this particular yarn again.

I also finished the Baby Surprise Jacket. This pattern is a classic pattern by Elizabeth Zimmerman, a woman who is totally revered in the knitting community and who sadly has passed away. The jacket is a surprise because it goes from looking like this:

To this (after sewing two little seams for the sleeves, adding the buttons, and weaving in the ends):

I finished the actual knitting on this jacket a while ago in May, but had trouble finding buttons. I finally found buttons at Weaving Works in Seattle.

To give credit where credit is due, husband sewed on the buttons AND he graciously wove in the ends for the sweater. This is about the extent of his sewing skills. His mother taught him how to sew buttons before he left for college all those years ago, so that he could fix his own shirts should any buttons pop off. I am glad he knows how to do this because finishing knitted garments is my least favorite part of the knitting process.

Happy Father's Day!

For the future daddy in the family, I decided to make homemade blueberry pancakes (one of his favorite things to eat) on Father's Day.

I used fresh organic blueberries we received from our organic produce delivery service, and buttermilk (yes, I went and got some more - this will now spawn a new slew of buttermilk related dishes).

These pancakes were delicious with pure maple syrup drizzled on top. As a treat, we even had some crisp bacon with the pancakes. Delicious!

These pancakes are based on the Blueberrry Buttermilk Pancakes from the Joy of Cooking.  I made the pancakes a little differently by substituting some whole wheat flour for some of the all-purpose white flour, and adding a little less butter to the recipe. 

Then, since I had all my baking stuff out anyway, I made some homemade banana bread with bananas that were on their last legs.  The whole house smelled so warm and inviting as this bread was baking in the oven.

Tater Tot Frittata

I got a crazy random craving for tater tots one day.  You know, the kind that you use to eat as a little kid or got as part of a school lunch.  Don't ask me to explain it, just one of those pregnancy things, I guess.  Anyway, I ate a few, then felt bleh about the rest, so they have been sitting in a freezer for while, taking up valuable space. 

I decided I needed to do something about this, so I came up with a recipe to use up the tater tots.  I made a Tater Tot Frittata as a weekend brunch for me and husband.  It was pretty tasty, so thought I would share the recipe.  Of course, since I didn't measure out each ingredient, the recipe is really an approximation.  Plus, you can add a lot of your own ingredients to make it your own!

Tater Tot Frittata

2 cups of tater tots (Shredded potatoes would work, too, but soak the shredded potato in cold water to get rid of excess starch.)

1/2 medium onion, chopped

2 small cubanelle peppers, chopped (Again, just what I had on hand, you can use whatever veggies/fillings you might like. I imagine mushrooms, crumbled bacon and/or cheese would be delicious.)

4 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream  (I think this adds a lot to the recipe.)
1/3 cup milk
Vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
Serves about 4 people (We had leftovers.)

Grease the bottom of a 12" oven proof skillet with vegetable oil.  Evenly layer the tater tots (or shredded potatoes) in the skillet.  Mash the tater tots to create a potato like pancake on the bottom of the skillet. 

If you are just using shredded potatoes, no need to mash down.  Fry until golden and crispy (you might want to carefully flip the pancake to brown on both sides).  

In a separate small pan, saute the chopped onions and peppers (you can add a little butter to the veggies for more flavor, or just use the vegetable oil).  

Once the vegetables are softened, layer the sauted vegetables on the potatoes in the skillet. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, sour cream and milk.  Add salt and pepper.  Carefully pour the egg mixture on top of the potatoes and vegetables.  

Place the skillet in a 375 degree pre-heated oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes until egg mixture are set (poke in the center with a toothpick, and see if it comes out clean, if you are concerned).  Slice, serve and eat!  

I cut up some basil into thin ribbons (chiffonade for those fancy cooking types) as a finish. 

If You Need a Little Knitting Help

I taught my friend S to knit while we visited Seattle. I was slightly worried that we had chosen such fine yarn for a first project, but I knew she would be able to handle it. But then, after I returned to San Francisco, I got an email entitled "NOOOOOOOO!" and I knew something had happened.

So, for those of you who might not have a real live knitter to turn to, I offer you this website. It is chock full of information and helpful videos, so you can actually SEE how to do something. The videos don't go too quickly, so you can follow along. And best of all, it is FREE. Use it, and be glad it exists - I consult this website all the time.

Childbrith Preparation

Good lordie! We spent 8 hours on Saturday at a childbirth preparation class. It was useful information, but sooooo tiring. We watched some videos of different types of delivery, too. It is amazing what women's bodies can do and how strong women can be.

Meet Our New Neighbor!

Just look at him!  He is so freakin' cute, I can't stand it!  His name is Jessie and he is a chocolate lab.  He is about 2 months old.

Bainbridge Island and Churchmouse

On the first day of our Seattle weekend getaway, my friend S (our gracious hostess for the weekend), husband and I took a ferry over to Bainbridge Island to visit Churchmouse Yarns & Teas and do some sightseeing.

Just look at this view as we pull away from the pier!

I LOVED Churchmouse. Look at the inviting exterior!

If I owned a yarn shop, Churchmouse would be my prototype. The decor is absolutely charming - it is clean, bright and well-organized. If you look closely, you can spot S in one of the below pictures - isn't she adorable? She is probably having a small heart attack at some yarn prices.

Buttons!

Tea!

The staff was friendly, and if you buy yarn, there are free shop patterns available. I bought some Koigu KPPPM (I just love this stuff) for a ruffle scarf, and some Jo Sharp Summer SoHo cotton for a scarf for my friend. My friend also picked up a lovely skein of Misti International Alpaca in a variegated bright kelly green so that she could learn to knit! I got her a pair of Clover circulars to spreading the knitting love...but more on this later.

On Bainbridge, we also visited Blackbird Bakery, which is right around the corner from Churchmouse.

S and I shared a ridulous pastry that had hardened caramel around the bottom. Um, no picture of this because it was gone too quickly. Husband had a cookie which he bought solely because of the decoration on it.

"Help me, I am missing an eye!"

After our treats, we wandered over to a local artist bazaar. S and I each purchased a pair of earrings from Woven Chains Jewelry. We bought the same pair (large love knots) - whatver, we both know what is good. Husband found someone selling reusable cloth maxi pads. Sorry, not me for, thanks.

Then we wandered down to the water's edge and sat outside for a while.

Hello, random ferret. What are you doing here by the water's edge?

Then, we went back to the docks to get on the ferry back to Seattle.

Funny Memory

A few days ago, I received a birthday gift in the mail from one of my best friends R, a vegan. She got me the knitting book, "No Sheep for You" (ok, I prompted this idea), which has tons of information about, and nice patterns for, non-animal fiber knitting. Remember, R is a vegan. Whenever I make her anything, I use non-animal fiber, preferably organic, yarn. I typically don't knit too much with non-animal fiber yarn because I find that it is hard on my hands and doesn't easily forgive any tension blunders, but for her, I will do it!

She ordered this book for me a while ago, but for some reason it took forever to arrive. I emailed to let her know that I had finally received it, and she promptly replied, "That is great news because delivering packages to you (especially birthdays) seems to be cursed, starting with that mail bomb back in '95 or whenever that was."

I had totally forgotten about that mail bomb incident. Years ago, R had tried to send me a package for my birthday. She diligently put the gifts (two t-shirts) in a padded envelope and dropped it into the corner mailbox in her sleepy hometown. Weeks later, I still hadn't received this supposed birthday surprise and I doubted very much that she had gotten me anything at all. Then, all of a sudden a package showed up. Inside the envelope was another very battered looking envelope that smelled smoky, and a letter. The letter from the US Postal Service explained that my poor package had fallen victim to a mail bomb that some "vandal" (their word, not mine) dropped into the very mailbox that R tried to use. The mailbox was damaged, along with all the mail inside. So random! R sent me the letter as proof that you just can't make this stuff up. I had to wash the t-shirts a couple of times to get out the smoky smell, but I wore those things for years. I know somewhere in all the clutter, I still have that letter. I should try to find it.

A New Korean Blog for Me and More Knitting Sales

One of my favorite blogs, Stuff Korean Moms Like, went silent because the blogger was in the midst of grad school applications. That blog is just freakin' hilarious because so much of what she writes about is so damn true. Growing up, I knew about fan death, the "joys" of extra homework and straight A's, and so on. So, I needed to find another crazy website about Koreans, because that is just how I roll. I found this one. I will be a Kimchi Mama soon, so better start reading up now.

Also, Knit Picks is having a yarn sale, but only for this week. Damn these sales...and why is it that I always seems to manage to buy the yarn right BEFORE the sale occurs?!? That is a total "booooo!"

By the way, I took the plunge and invested in my own ball winder and swift. Now I know I have gone over to the deep end with knitting.

Chronicles of the Baby Bump

Baby Bump lands in Seattle.

Picture taken outside of Seatac airport. I don't know how it happened, but the bump is featured in high relief because the background turned all white in the photo. At this point, baby, husband and I had been up since 3:30 AM, running on about 2 1/2 hours of sleep. So many things to take care of before leaving on a trip!

Baby Bump enjoys a delicious pastry from Bainbridge Island's Blackbird Bakery.

Baby Bump takes advatange of a photo op. It was windy!

Baby Bump visits the Public Market.

At the Public Market, we walked around, ate more food and generally had a leisurely day.

Baby Bump goes to Olympic Sculpture Park (where incidentally, Jessica of Rose-Kim Knits happened to be attending a wedding reception - we walked right by the reception).

We then ate dinner at Waterfront Grill. Delicious.

Baby Bump lands safely back in San Francisco.

Our Last Travel Fling (at least for a while)

This past weekend, husband and I travelled to Seattle to visit one of my old friends from college days and her husband. This wasn't our first time in Seattle, but it was the first time that we got to travel together to Seattle and to stay with our friends. We had a great time, and the trip involved:

1. Knitting stores - Ok, I subjected my non-knitting friend, her husband and my husband to this. They were all incredibly patient. Witness this great example of "patience":

That's husband asleep in a chair at Churchmouse Yarns & Teas on Bainbridge Island.

2. Great food.

3. Seeing the sights. Baby bump got see some exciting things.

More details/pictures to come.

Knitting Tattoos

Check these out. Hilarious. I would get one that said something like "Knit Free or Die" with a ball of yarn on fire with two knitting needles coming out of it. Yeah...

I do have a random tattoo leftover from my silly youth. It is on my tummy, and is supposed to be a snake (my Chinese astrological symbol), but really, it just looks like a sad piece of string. I got this when I was in Estonia (can you say random?!). Basically, I let one of my friends I was travelling with convince me into getting one. She got one, too, but it ended up being a lot nicer than mine. She got one of those ubiquitous lower back tattoos, and I think it was of a lizard or something. My husband also has some tattoos, one on each arm of his last name in the traditional Japanese and Chinese characters. Those are rather large, and pretty nice. Not like mine at all.

I remember being ridiculously frightened, and that the tattoo artist shared a couple of shots of vodka with me before we started. Uh, that is a total no-no for reputable tattoo artists. Many in the States will not allow anyone who is drunk to get a tattoo. But, no worries, at that time, my alcohol tolerance was way high, and a few of shots of vodka was nothing, to me, and to the tattoo guy. I also remember another one of my friends saying at the time, "Dude, if you ever get pregnant, you are going to have, like, an anaconda across your belly."

Well, here I am, years later, actually pregnant. I examined my tattoo this morning. So far, no anaconda, just a sad little piece of string.

Noe Knit Closing

Sad news. Noe Knit is closing on June 9. The store is holding a sale from June 2 to June 9. I always appreciated the helpful staff and that the store stayed open until 8 PM on weekdays, which meant that working people could actually make it to the store. I hate to see small local businesses close, but during these tough times, it is understandable.

Moderne Baby Blanket

I have finished the audiobook, "O Jerusalem" by Laurie R. King, and greatly enjoyed listening to it. Listening to an audiobook is a different experience than tangibly turning pages and reading print on a page, but not in a bad way. The reader's (Jenny Sterlin) voice reminded me a lot of Dame Judy Dench's voice as M in the recent James Bond movies. I think I will continue with the Mary Russell detective series audiobooks, which luckily, our public library carries.

In the process of listening to the book, I made progress on the Moderne Baby Blanket:

The effect is supposed to be reminiscent of a Mondrian painting, with its neat study of colored blocks. The lighting is off in the picture, so the khaki colored part is more of a gold-yellow, and the green is a little bitmore vibrant. With my color choices, the blanket looks very autumnal and I hate to say it, a little bit 70s. Oh, well. Baby won't mind, as long as it keeps her warm. The blanket is easy to make, and the perfect project if you are watching tv, or listening to the radio, or an audiobook.

I downloaded a new audiobook this weekend. The book, "Crocodile on the Sandbank" by Elizabeth Peters, is the first in another mystery series featuring a female detective, Amelia Peabody. I love Egyptology, love British mysteries, and this one seems like a fun, light (but not stupid) read. I plan to listen to this while traveling to visit friends in Seattle this coming weekend. Both husband and I are really looking forward to the trip!