Thursday, September 17, 2009

Gardening for Those with a Short Attention Span (a.k.a. Sprouting)




In my pantry, there is always an excess of dried beans, lentils, and peas. Maybe because they're basically free and I always intend to make things with them, but then forget that in order to use them they generally need to either soak overnight or simmer for a LONG time and remember this only when I'm trying to make supper. So much for planning ahead. Well, I decided to be proactive with my stash of dried lentils. I sprouted some. This is bound to be a new regular occurance in the Kelley home. And since I don't really have the brainspace for gardening that extends further than herbs and sprouts, this is perfect. In order to sprout lentils (or basically any other kind of seed, legume, or grain) you'll need just a few simple things:

1) lentils, etc.
2) a mason jar with ring
3) cheesecloth, a lid for the mason jar with little holes all over, or like me, a (new) knee-high nylon from the box that I keep by the dryer to catch lint coming from the hose. ( I know, it should pipe outside. It doesn't.)

Start with just a tablespoon or two of lentils (I used about 1Tb, for reference), pick out any cracked or deformed lentils and put them into your jar, cover with lukewarm water, place lid on jar, and soak overnight 8-12 hours. Rinse and drain through the cloth 2 times a day for the next 3 or so days until your sprouts are about an inch long (for lentils). Rinse again, and eat. Raw or cooked (preferably raw) these are great for you. Cheap. Simple. As nutrient rich as you can get. Fantastic. In the time it took me to write this, all of my sprouts have been eaten. By me, of course, because Corbin wasn't interested and John wasn't here. They taste like garden fresh peas, and they're very tender and crunchy. Mmmm.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Mr. Owl




I have a friend whose boy is turning a whole year old, so I thought I'd try my hand at making something a boy might like. I've never made a stuffed animal before, let alone stitched anything by hand (the face), but I was pretty excited about this. It's a simple rendering of a great horned owl, and it's made from old tweed jackets and wool coats, plus some scraps of fabric I had laying around. Only time will tell how sturdy it turns out to be... the ears were already starting to wrinkle by the time I took these photos because my children got a hold of it and were playing. But, let's face it, what they're going to be used for are handles for bopping siblings with the owl. One of the fabrics I chose for the eyes (the brown base) is going to fray, I thought kind of like feathers. Maybe it'll be cute, maybe it'll fall apart. Like I said, we'll just have to wait and see. It's a pillow... it's a stuffed animal... it's a friend. A very wise friend.

Thursday, September 10, 2009

First Day of Preschool

9.9.09. It came and went without incident. But it was a big day. A big day for Corbo. He went off to preschool, all dressed in green. He loved it. Loves his teacher, loves the kids. He's the only boy, but that's OK. Since his best friend for most of his life is a girl, he really enjoys playing with quiet, nice girls. (Although, he does enjoy a good water fight every now and then... I wish I had a picture of the water fight from this past weekend. He and a friend got so drenched at the park spigot that I just had to take off his clothes before we went home. He wouldn't keep the towel on himself, so I was forced to maintain his decency by giving him something to wear. That something was one of Petra's pink diaper covers. Yep. He looked like he was wearing pink panties. Nice. Pink underwear and Chuck Taylors on my little boy. A not so great, but very funny combo.) Corbin will have school in the mornings three days a week. I'm so happy he's going (many thanks to his sponsor, the fabulous Auntie Lindsey) to preschool, because I LOVED preschool. I remember it vividly. Making squid prints (yes, squid dipped in paint), eating "hard tack" learning about pilgrims, making friends, being engaged to Matthew, the sweet little boy with dark curly hair, learning about voting, "selling" popcorn at the carnival from my little box/tray I had strapped on me like a vendor. And I remember reading with my mom at home... the Max the Cat books. I remember liking the one with gum that went all over the house best. I might have to get those for Corbin. Or, seeing that they only come in sets, Corbin and a dozen other kids. I'm really looking forward to this year of learning that Corbin is beginning. It will be so good for him, he's completely ready for a more structured school experience. And he loves being around people. It's perfect. And, as a bonus, it gives me more time to do MY homework.

Saturday, September 5, 2009

My First Infant Car Seat Cover





We were recently given an infant car seat for our daughter, but it was made out of that homely standard beige and blue check material. It simply wouldn't do. So I made a new cover for my sweet Pete's car seat. I decided to try this because of the great covers I saw over at MADE. And in my humble opinion, I think it turned out pretty fantastically for my first try. I'm starting to realize that I really need to test out designs on my own children and things before I give them away, but I've got some pretty great friends who are loyal and honest testers as well. This cover is made of some green, pink, brown, and tan cotton paisley that I cut from a fitted king-size sheet that I bought years ago to use for fabric because it was only a couple of dollars. I'm a sucker for great deals on any sort of fabric, if you haven't caught on yet. The shade and binding are brown canvas. It took me about four hours total, and I'm so happy with it. Paisley, by the way, is John's favorite pattern. Makes it easy to find awesome vintage ties for him. During this little project, I learned plenty about how to make the next one, and I only encountered minor problems that were eventually remedied. Now I know I need a binding maker. And that I can make car seat covers. Success!

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

I Love Pandora

Pandora is the perfect solution for people like me. People who have a love of music, but don't have the time to explore what new things the world of song and sound has to offer. Also, you can follow Chris' blog; he's got fantastic media focused updates that allow me to feel like I'm aware of what's going on around me in a musical sense.

I've been on a bit of a Glen Hansard binge... can't get enough of him. Ever since I saw Once sometime last year I've been quite in love. Immediately bought the soundtrack, which I think is one of the best film soundtracks I've ever heard, and have listened to it manymanymany times since then. So lately I've been listening to The Frames radio on Pandora... and having a great happy spirit because of it. Not because the music is necessarily happy... it's not. It's just good. The Frames, Louis, Band of Horses... etcetera. Do you use Pandora? If you don't, you probably should be.