Domesticity

One of my food blogs, At the Baker's Bench, has really inspired me to finally make a change that I have been wanting to make for a long time. The lady who writes this blog is challenging herself to make all her own bread in 2009. It seems like a very large undertaking and she is planning on baking EVERYTHING herself- down to hot dog buns. I don't know that I will be that gung ho, but I certainly plan to bake all my own bread and try out new recipes for other baked goods.

Once I have the baby, I am going to be working mainly from home, and so I am so excited to have more time to improve my baking skills! I have made muffins and cookies and pizza dough and bagels and really tasty cinnamon rolls (according to Matthew) and all kinds of baked goods, but it is pretty rare that I do it. Also, I don't really challenge myself to try anything new terribly often. The one skill I have wanted more than any other is baking homemade bread. I don't know if I have ever made it on my own. I have with my mom a few times many years ago. Matthew and I got a bread maker for our wedding and I use that a lot, but I want to mostly wean myself off of it. I will still use it as the very best motivation for getting out of bed on conference mornings! Nothing like the smell of fresh bread when you wake up! Works like a charm!

The At the Baker's Bench blog continues to have posts about her progress with new recipes and fun stuff from other bloggers who are committing to it, so check it out. Let me know if you decide to join in!

I already made my first bread from scratch this week. I made banana bread. I know, I know. What kind of aspiring baker has never made banana bread!?!? I have to start somewhere! I bought some bananas and waited a week for them to brown and then decided to get started. There is a whole story about how difficult this simple undertaking was that I shall relate.

I had the three bananas set aside for the bread and let them sit out for a week or so. I picked out a recipe that looked good. I had all the ingredients and was planning on making it last Sunday night- a week ago. That night I went over to Greg and Emily's to hang out and get some wisdom about what to do with this child once she comes out. I stayed later than I should have not realizing how late it was (sorry Greg and Emily). In my head I decided that once I got home, I would make banana bread. When I got home, Matthew had made this boxed pull apart cinnamon bread as a surprise! It was just done baking as I got home. It smelled so good and was very tasty! He is so great! He had used the last of the eggs and we now had this baked treat, so I abandoned my banana bread for that night.

A few days later, I asked Ellen to come over and to bring 2 eggs with her so that I could make the banana bread. I thought I might make it while we were chit chatting. Instead we ended up taking a walk (to get this baby out) and by the time we got back, my right elephant leg had swollen up to three times its size and so I just wanted to sit down. Foiled again!! I was starting to wonder if I was ever going to be able to bake my first proper loaf of bread!

The next day was Thursday and Matthew and I had an appointment at the hospital at 2:30 to go down and start the first step of the induction process for the baby. My doctor thinks that she could be about 9 pounds now and I was not at all dilated at the doctor appointment on Wednesday, so she wanted me to go down and get this gel applied that starts the process. Those of you who know all about this don't need any more information. Those of you who don't know about it, probably don't want more information, so I am going to stop right there.

Matthew and I went down at 2:30 and waited around in the waiting room until after 3 when a nurse came out and told us that they just had a number of women in labor come through and asked if we could go home and come back later that evening. Well, we were both more than willing to do it! I was really hungry and hadn't eaten much yet and Matthew had an eye on this car on Craigslist that he wanted to go test drive and possibly buy. So, we skipped out of there, went to go grab some food (my favorite- cheese quesadilla) and went to go test drive this '87 white BMW.

The car was really cute, in great shape, and quite a steal on the price, so we bought it! We have been looking for a car for a few months so that we will be able to take our baby home (as we share a 2 seater now) and we finally found and bought one! I am so excited! Here she is!




Back to the bread! We get home with our new car around 7pm and I decide to call the hospital and see when to come in. Matthew is outside oohing and aahhing over the car. He has wanted one of these old BMW's for a long time. Anyway, I call the hospital and the nurse tells me that it is very busy and she has no idea when it will slow down. She said they will call me. It could be 2 am or even tomorrow morning. No problem for me! I will at long last make my banana bread!

About a half an hour later I start making the bread. I turn on the oven, got out all the ingredients and started mixing up the liquids. Just as I am about to add the eggs, my phone rings and the nurse tells me that it has quieted down and we can go to the hospital! I am slightly annoyed- will I ever get to make this bread??!?!! So, I cover up the liquids and put them in the fridge and go down to the hospital. I shall not comment on the 10 hour, all night hospital visit other than to say that it was a horrible experience and I have enormous respect for women and what they put up with to have a baby- and I haven't even had one yet.

Matthew and I got home about 7am the next morning and slept until noon. I then got up and made my banana bread!!!!! Yeah!! It turned out very tasty! If it is this difficult to make homemade bread in the future, this whole resolution may not go so well. We will see! And no, I did not take a picture of the bread. I am just happy that I actually made it!

Photography

I love this photography blog! The pictures are so amazing! This photographer does amazing scenery and also does weddings and engagements. I love these pictures and wish I had this kind of talent.

I really love to look at pictures of weddings. I just really like all the fun details you can add to personalize your event. I especially love to look at the food and the color combinations of things.

I am in love with this cake below. This is the coolest wedding cake I have ever seen! I rarely see wedding cakes that I really like, so it was so suprising when I fell in love with this one. I LOVE it!!!

This little picture does not do the cake justice, so go to this post and scroll down and see it in its full glory!

Snow Fun

For Matthew's birthday we went up North to play in the snow. We took little Bug with us. The snow was at least a few days old and had an ice crust on it. Ellen gave Bug this pink coat a long time ago and she finally got to really use it.

As you can see, she was quite thrilled about the whole thing!

Being 8 months pregnant did put a damper on the snow wrestling, but Matthew did push me over a few times and watched me try and get up. It was brutal!

Golden Globes - Best Performance Actress TV Series - Tina Fey (30 Rock)

Golden Globes

The Golden Globes were on Sunday night. I recorded it and fast forwarded through most of it. I really like to see the way the dresses move and see them from every angle, which is pretty impossible if you don't watch the show! There were funny parts as well that made it more interesting. There was a lot of Tina Fey funniness, which I enjoy. Unfortunately, her dress was not so pleasing, but we will get to that. There were a lot of boring dresses that were not bad or good, but just not worth the effort of finding pictures for. To view some of those, look at the dresses that Penelope Cruz, Demi Moore, or Eva Longorio wore.

First, here are the dresses that I did not love nor did I hate. They are not boring or hideous, but they did not capture my fancy.

I have never seen Mad Men, but understand that this actress is in the show. I like the neckline of the dress with the strips of fabric, but I think the continued strips at the waist make it a little too costumey. The color is really pretty and unique and her hair looks really nice with it. I couldn't find a picture of the back, but the back was very cool.

I usually like the way that Anne Hathaway dresses. She does not dress revealing for the most part and wears interesting clothes. If you look at her gown close up, she looks lovely. I think the hair and makeup and earrings look really classy. The dress is extremely sparkly, so you don't need much ornamentation. The big problem is when you back up and look at her from head to toe.

Her skin is so pale and the dark color of the dress totally washes her out. Her features practically disappear. Her hair is so close to her head and her earrings are so small in comparison to the dress, that all you see is a glaringly white shoulders and head. She still looks nice, but she doesn't stand out. In general, I think she is really good at picking clothes that make her stand out and that balance on her body well. In the next two pictures, whether you love the outfits or not, her features and hair are balanced and look nice.

America Ferrera looks very elegant and youthful. The dress looks better in person, but looks pretty good in the picture too. She did the same kind of look really recently at another red carpet event that I also liked (below).

I like this length on her.

So you are probably wondering how I could not hate this look. Stay with me here. Just imagine that the sleeves were not pirate sleeves. Imagine that they were just sleek and long. I really like her hair and necklaces and belt. I like the long skirt. I think she looks really elegant (minus the sleeves) and very modest. I just think she looks classy and unique. I think there is a little of a 90's vibe, but the belt and hair save it. The sleeves prevent her from moving into the section of outfits I like, though.

Kate Beckinsale looks really nice. I don't like how extreme of a mermaid silhouette the bottom creates and I don't really like the neckline. I think it is architectural and different, but it reminds me of fondant on a wedding cake. Overall, I think she looks good, but I can't get past wanting to reshape the neckline into a bow or something,

I don't like a lot about this dress. The color is okay, but Cameron Diaz just wore that same color at another red carpet event not long ago. It is hard to see in this picture, but I hate that peekaboo bit of underarm fat on her left side. Above all, I hate her hair. Her roots are all grown out and her hair, once again, is not brushed. If you are going to wear a dress that busy, the hair has to be more controlled. Overall, she looks like a mess with potential.

This outfit should really be in the "like it" section but for the fact that I just don't care. I don't know why either! I like her hair and makeup and color of the dress. I can't name anything I don't like except maybe how low cut it is. She looks lovely, but it just doesn't do anything for me. It is probably the best she has ever looked at one of these award shows though, I must say.

This dress puzzles me. If it did not have the big napkin on the hip, it would be boring with nothing to it. On the other hand, the napkin is kind of different and fun. The top doesn't fit her right. On the red carpet you can see all these weird peaks in the bodice and you are afraid the dress isn't zipped up in the back. It reminds me of a couple dresses that Cameron Diaz has worn in the last few years, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

Now on to the ones I hate!

My biggest complaint about this dress is that this girl is 16! 16 and showing this kind of cleavage. She was there with her mom and dad for crying out loud! I guess she is a role model to kids, whether she wants to be or not, and it bothers me that she wore this. I think the dress itself is quite unattractive, but what bothers me the most is how inappropriate it is on her.

This one pains me to do. I pretty much hate the dress that Tina Fey wore. I like the skirt of the dress a lot. It is a pretty fabric and moves really pretty, but she has no top on! The diamonds on the shoulders are cool and she could look really good if the neckline were raised up. She won an award and the camera was on her and she bent over to stand up and her whole upper body was revealed. She is clearly taped into that thing so as not to have a wardrobe malfunction, but one of the things I have always like about Tina Fey is that she would never wear anything she has to tape herself into to begin with- I thought. She has done low cut before- as in the picture below- but this is far worse. I HATE this look. She was hilarious at the event though and if you look at the post of my blog before this one, there is a funny video of her calling out her internet "haters". I wish she read my blog so she could call me out on trashing her dress.

Hmm, I wonder why Salma Hayek is famous? Above: Exhibit A. Below: Exhibit B. Ridiculous.

Why can't these poor girls from "The Office" get a stylist? Why?! It is just mean. I swear that Pam does that same hair and dress every time and it is not good. Angela just wore the bridesmaid dress from her sister's wedding last month. Just horrible. They are both attractive and would look great with a little help. Angela looks SO BAD. Looks at her chest and stomach and that seam down the middle of the dress!

This lady is so freaky skinny. The gathers in the bodice look like her ribcage.

Miss Texas.

Beyonce wears this same dress every time. Her cleavage is just obscene. I got bored typing this and have no more to say.

Oh J. Lo! What can you say!!? Is this gold lame'? It is so unflattering on her!! There is no front and no back to the dress. Just a hideous gold lame' skirt. I wonder how many times her husband put his hand on her back and just felt skin and looked down and just saw her chest bone and had a mini-freak out thinking his wife was at this event naked. I think she looks the worst of anyone there, but for...

... this disaster!!!!

Oh my gosh!! This dress is so hideous! It is actually really funny to look at! Look at her pose in this picture! Then you get in closer and look at her hair! What the freak?!!? Look at the face she is making!! What is wrong with her?! When I saw her I just kept laughing and laughing. It made the whole night!

She looks like an escaped mental patient.


Now for the dresses I liked:

I guess these two are in a movie adaptation of Grey Gardens. If you have ever seen the documentary on it, it is fascinating. This mother and daughter- cousins of Jackie O. live in a run down house that is overgrown. It is a very sad and interesting story. I am not quite sure why it needs to be remade and even more unsure of why they chose these two to do it, but that is of no matter. At the award show these two were really hanging on each other and giggling and stuff. It was very weird. It seems like they were silly 12 year old girls.

This blue dress that Drew Barrymore is wearing is so fun. I love it! I love the skirt and the material and the color. I just adore the dress!

Grey Gardens

Her hair, on the other hand, is a wreck! I can't stand it! I think she was trying to be a little Grey Gardens and was taking some license. She was trying to promote her movie. That is the only way I can justify liking this look. If you put your finger over her head, I love it! I have to really like this dress a lot to put it in the like section with hair like that- and I do!

Love the dress.

I really love this whole outfit. I hate that the daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore gets to have a role in the award show just because she is their daughter, but nevertheless, she looks great. I love the color of dress and I like how it almost clashes with her hair, but not quite. I love the belt and the details at the bodice and waist. The skirt is so pretty! I think the girl's hair and makeup are great too. She is a little young for all that chest showing, but at least it is not cleavage. Very fun!

I think this dress is so airy and pretty. The color is lovely on the girl and I love the bodice and skirt. It reminds me very much of one Charlize Theron wore a few years ago- which I also loved.

You have to see this dress on the tv to appreciate how beautiful and rich the fabric is. It seems that almost every actress wore a strapless and that style is not my favorite, but this looks so nice on her. I love the neckline with the square part and the skirt falls so beautifully. She just looks so elegant.

Laura Linney looked the best I have ever seen her and one of the best dressed of the night. I love this dress! I love the color and skirt and neckline. She looks young and classy and glowing. When I first saw it, I wanted Kate Blanchett to be wearing it because it just seemed to suit her, but it is very nice with this lady's hair and skin. I love it!

I don't know who this girl is, but I love her dress! Is she from Mad Men too? I adore this dress. It is one of my very favorites. It is so retro but very current. I love that color of red. I love the sleeves and skirt. Her hair is cute with it; one of my very favorites of the night.

I love this dress as well. It is very pretty and ladylike on Elizabeth Banks. I think the jewellry and hair and makeup are perfect along with it. The neckline is a little low, as usual, but I love it overall. This one you really have to see on tv to get the full effect because of the way it moves and the color of it.

Amy Adams looks so great! I love her hair color against this dress color. I love the fullness of the skirt. She looks so elegant and beautiful. This is one of my very favorites of the night. Another dress you need to see on tv in order to appreciate the beauty and weight of the fabric.

And finally, this canary yellow dress. I love it and I want it! It is so retro and feminine. She should be dancing in this dress. I love it! I did not get to see it on tv, unfortunelty and would like to. This is by far one of my favorite dresses in the last few years.

Finally, I love this picture of Ricky Gervais and wife. They are like little happy twins. This picture really made me smile! Her dress is horrible, but I love this picture!