My Happy Place

Getting ready to have a baby is interesting. People talk about "visualizing" something other than labor (when you're in it) to make things smoother, easier, hopefully less painful, etc. Sort of a FIND YOUR HAPPY PLACE type... thing. They tell you to pick something detailed and easy to find.

photo by super-friend Bill Giles

My current happy place is actually a memory: big band night with all my folk dance chums. I'd always fantasized about a 1940's swing bash. It was so nice to have one for my very own!

The music, the real-vintage gown from 1942, coordinating gloves, the falling snow outside, performing an Andrew's sisters song with Tiff and Jan, kissing my escort and knowing we'd be married in a week, the live band, a ballroom filled with people who could actually foxtrot, and getting my make-up just the way I wanted it.....*sigh,* what a night!

That IS a happy place.

For Those of You Who Like MST3K,

Dylan and I quote this one all the time. The commentary is funny, yeah, but the actual clip is awesome too. Remember kids, "Always wash your hair on the same day every week!" and don't forget, "You're not clean if your fingernails aren't!" 

Extra points if you get the subtle Fonzie reference. :)

My Favorite New Face

Photo by Heather Mildenstein, stolen from here.

Meet my brother's new dog, Dorothy, a 9 week old Airedale Terrier. I'm spending too much time at my brother and sis-in-law's house; they're dying for privacy, I'm sure, but I can't stop myself! Why should I care about vacuuming or dishes when I can walk three blocks and spend time with a soft adorable puppy who loves me?

She's just too cute! Soft paws, cozy fur, and the sweetest little romping scamper-- I'm undone. And then she'll snuggle into my lap! Ohhhhh. Dorothy has no idea how much power she's got.

Same credits: Photo by Heather Mildenstein, stolen from here.

Love Linked Cookie Cutters

Found at Fancy Flours

I have fallen in love with a new baking website. Trust me, you'll see a ton of posts from FancyFlours this year-- they have some of the coolest stuff I've ever seen. Awesome, brilliant things that spin my imagination into a whirl: like candy molds for gemstones-- can you say Leprechaun treasure, batman? SWEETNESS.

Baby Hair

 

Baby Rachel Mildenstein had tons of hair. Baby Dylan Maltby had hardly any. I'm very curious to see how our Baby Maltby turns out... hair wise. I'm thinking that I should get one of these to help me picture it. 

You're never too old to play imaginary-hairdo with iron shavings! Wooly Willy agrees with me. 

This Makes Me So Happy

There are a dozen reasons to love this movie clip: it's general vintage appeal, for example, or the 4 year old hula prodigy. Watch it! I swear it'll make you smile.

I originally was introduced to this by my History of Music professor, who used the short as an example of how classical music can be used to great effect in film. If you keep that in mind as you watch, you'll be thinking no kidding! just like I was.

Happy Valentines Day!

Don't forget to tell people how much they mean to you!

Happy Birthday, Abe.

 

"The struggle of today is not altogether for today; it is for a vast future also. With a reliance on Providence, all the more firm and earnest, let us proceed in the great task which events have devolved upon us."

--Abraham Lincoln, December 3, 1861

I want to have the first sentence of this quote displayed in my home. Few better reminders to maintain an "eternal perspective" exist, and even fewer are so eloquent. Happy Birthday, wise guy!

3rd Trimester Begins!

Today I'm 28 weeks, which means I've started the third stage of pregnancy. (Cue Card Reads: Applause!) Hooraaaaay. 

Recently I stumbled across a Dozen Eggs Bake Shoppe, which makes the most beautiful frosted creations. So cute! I am now inspired. My favorites are the little frosted onesie cookies.

Celtic Fiddle Festival

I have a Pandora playlist some of you may enjoy-- the channel is seeded by The Chieftains and Celtic Fiddle Festival. I LOVE CELTIC FIDDLE FESTIVAL. Check them out. Their music is not too hyperactive, doesn't have annoying squeezebox-sounding interludes or piercing flutes, and they feature all the best parts of Celtic music. Nice and folksy!

They sort of remind me of Kirkmount, if you're familiar with them (though sadly, Pandora doesn't have their music).

New Jersey's Hoggin All the Snow

While I've been sniffing over having no snow (in the land with license plates that say "greatest snow on earth," no less) my awesome older sister Melissa and her cute boys Lincoln and Grant made the ULTIMATE snowman; or should I say snow-giant? Seriously, this monster could rival the snow creations of Calvin & Hobbes! Next time you build a snow-giant I want in, ok?

I hope you don't mind that I posted this without asking your permission. The snowman made me do it! *shifty apologetic grin* He, uh, wanted publicity! *cough* Really I just wished he was my snowman and I wanted to live vicariously in your world of snowy wonderment.

Ahem! Lest I forget, here lies the honorable mention for Kenny and the Dog, who did not make it into the above photo but are too awesome to leave out.

Phil Says Spring is Coming

At the annual Groundhog Day celebration this morning in Punxsutawney, Pa., Phil was gently lifted from his sleep spot to perform his duties. "He surveyed his surroundings carefully and found that there was no shadow around. So an early spring it will be," says the article I'm quoting on People.com (full article here).

This morning marked Phil's 125th prediction, stemming from a tradition that began in 1887. Though there have been several Phils over the years – the Inner Circle doesn't reveal how many – the revered rodent has seen his shadow 98 times, and hasn't seen it just 16 times. Record keeping of the event didn't begin until 1900. 

Rachel's P.S.: This is the first time in memory that Phil has let me down. How could you, buddy? Where's my snow? :(

Free Samples

I'm so jealous of people who constantly receive free samples in the mail. You know-- the ones who post pictures on their blogs of all the free stuff they got? Exhibit A: 

I tried signing up for stuff online but I don't know if it'll even work. I am currently accepting advice on how to snag free-baby-goodies for myself. Ideas?

Pottery Barn Serves Geeks?

Since WHEN has Pottery Barn decided to have Star Wars themed bedrooms? Heck-- I'd love to get my kid the Boba Fett sheets-- but doesn't that seem a little out of character for classy McClassy-Class Pottery Barn?  You think the Vader alarm clock is sold separately?


If it turns out that being a geek is cool Dylan and I will soon be very fashionable. :D

Chicken Noodle Cold-Cure

I just found out that chicken soup actually can help reduce your cold symptoms. Go figure.

Apparently chicken contains a natural amino acid called cysteine, which can thin mucus in your lungs and make it less sticky so you can expel it more easily. 

I'm a vegetable-beef soup girl, myself. But Dylan LOVES chicken noodle. Our preferences aren't that helpful as far as Campbell's goes, though, cause processed canned soups don't work as well as the homemade types. 

For best results, make a fresh batch yourself. Better yet, add tons of pepper and hot spices. The spices will trigger a sudden release of watery fluids in your mouth, throat, and lungs, which will help thin down the respiratory mucus so it's easier to cough up and expel.

Pink Champagne Gown? I want one.

Golden Globes? Yeah, no one really cares. I checked in to see the gowns, and was surprised by Natalie Portman's look. She's pregnant! (And she won, incidentally.) Sorry I couldn't find a great picture of her sideways so you can see the bump. Great dress, especially for the bump, though I can't decide if the unorthodox combo of pink champagne and red is tasteful or not. Maybe if the rose had been pearl or cream? Hmm. 

Who knew my favorite dress of the globes would actually fit my growing-baby look?