baby bloomer bump update: 8 months

Oopsy...about 2 weeks late posting these pics, but here I am at 8 months - almost there! What a transformation. Remember how I used to say how fast the pregnancy was going? Well that has all changed! Mostly because I feel gigantic, stretched, slow and maybe just a tad waddly. I've heard the 'stretched belly' feeling likened to Joan River's face after having plastic surgery - yep, pretty much! It's getting harder to walk up the stairs, especially in my 3-story house {4 stories, if you count the basement...ouch}. And yesterday it took me 15 minutes to attempt to buckle on my gladiator sandals - and it didn't end in success. Flip flops it is!

It's also feeling a lot slower because of the anticipation. We just cannot wait to meet the little person who is actively dancing around in my tum. Who will she look like? Will she be artistic {like mom}, or musical {like pops}, or both or neither? So much to look forward to!

yay summer parties!

It is summer time! The weather is just so wonderful and with a few weekends of celebrating {Bloomer birthdays and Baby showers!} coming up I thought I'd share some nifty ideas I've discovered that methinks might make an appearance at our get togethers!

I really like this lemonade idea. For J Bloom's shower we are already going to have an old-fashioned lemonade stand with mason jar cups. This is such a good idea to have all the mason jars name-tagged with a napkin and cutlery in it ready to go. Then you just take your little package and dig in! Found via Project Wedding.

Always a sucker for a barn party! This is cute...and if you don't have a bench why can't you use a cushioned hay bale?? Found via Country Living.

These vellum paper mobiles are so cool! They would also be great for J Bloom's baby shower if we didn't already have too many ideas for hanging eye candy!! Found via Project Wedding {including instructions too!}

The germ freak in me LOVES this idea! I hate the creepy crawly bugs and flies that climb all over the salads at outdoor gatherings...yuck! And how cute are these?? They would be so perfect to compliment the mason jar lemonade glasses for the baby shower - but we would need about 30 of them! And then what about refills? And what if you are serving more than one salad...this is starting to get complicated!!! Found via Country Living.

Liking these posie ideas. The top pic is pretty cute and simple - wrap the container in newspaper - why not?! Easy peasy lemon squeezy! And at first I thought why is this bucket of flowers hanging? And then I realized it was a table cloth weight! So much prettier than those ugly clips! Also found via Country Living.

Honoring The Fallen, Praying For Those Serving

On this Memorial Day, my mind is on the men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. We should all be very grateful to them. And a local man is making sure the ones who are still in harm's way has some spiritual support.

Sheila here. I filed a Faith Works report this spring about Bobby Vallandingham. He is a veteran of the war in Iraq, and while he was serving, his late grandfather started non-denominational prayer services for our troops in 2005 at the Trucker’s Chapel at the TA truck stop on Ky. 18 in Florence. Bobby says he keeps up the tradition because he could feel the prayers when he was overseas: "I knew I had people praying for me. Being separated from my family, I had a lot of strength. I felt a lot of strength from people praying for me, and I know faith was vital in that because other believers were lifting me up."

Leaders of the service read the names of service members. When our cameras were there, they read the name of Tracy Goodart's son, who is serving in Afghanistan. She says, "We feel the presence of God when we come here."

The service is held on the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. Bobby calls it a divine appointment. "It's the least I can do to come here and pray for those serving, who are weary, who are separated from their families. I'm faithful to them since others were faithful to me."

Pauline Darley

Last summer while in Paris, I had a photo shoot with the immensely adorable and talented Pauline Darley. Recently I popped over to Pauline's website and am really enjoying all of her new work. She has been doing a lot of photos for Miss Pandora who is a French red-headed beauty and the shots are stunning. I can't wait to see more... Be sure to stop by Miss Pandora & Pauline Darley's website for some more French eye candy.




(All photos by Pauline Darley)

Friday flowers

Garden roses + Ikea yellow vase, all from my mom.

{roses, morning light}

They smell heavenly.

Mama, Is It Summer Yet?

I just received the most lovely book in the mail by the talented Nikki McClure. Like her previously illustrated book, All in a Day (which I mentioned here) her artwork is phenomenal! This new book entitled "Mama, Is It Summer Yet?" she not only illustrated, but wrote as well. Along with her artistic skill of hand-cut illustrations, I am charmed by her heartwarming words that ring really close to home because almost every single day our daughter asks, "is it Summer yet?"

i miss jack and kate

her hair is so awesome no? and now i'd like to just simply wear a black tank top and jeans.

hmm...or maybe just a white tank top with jeans...

i dig her cowboy-ish boots here with the white dress. it is a cool idea for bridesmaids...

hellloooo, jack!!

I can't believe Lost is over. My heart is hurty knowing I'll never see Jack and Kate ever again! I do love the other characters too, don't get me wrong, but Jack and Kate were my favs to look at. And this blog is about aesthetics right?! So...I thought I'd pay homage to how darn cool they both are. I mean, Jack ... need I say more? I've been in love with him since he was Charlie on Party of Five. So responsible, but so rugged all the same. Wagga wagga indeed! And Kate, could she BE any cooler? I love her simpe, low key, natural style with her messy hair. Just jeans and a plain black tank top looks stellar on her. May I have her body, please?

Real tapioca pudding

You know how sometimes you see something and the whole world shifts a little bit? I have two words for you - real. tapioca.

{real tapioca pearls}

Right now some of you are probably shuddering and others are cheering. That's how it goes with tapioca. I'm firmly in the cheering camp. Growing up, we could only get minute tapioca in the red cardboard box. It was the first dessert I could cook on my own. I loved it so much I told my little sister it was fish egg pudding just so I wouldn't have to share it. (It totally worked - she still doesn't eat tapioca)

I haven't made tapioca in years, but wandering the baking aisle at Whole Foods a while ago I noticed small tapioca pearls and made an impulse purchase. They are small, distinct pearls. You have to soak them before you can make pudding with them, but the wait is well worth it. They create a beautiful, creamy pudding and the pearls have a perfect, lightly chewy texture.

{real tapioca pudding}

I use the recipe on the back of the Bob's Red Mill bag, and it's excellent but I've found that the 1/2 cup of sugar they call for is overkill for me. I tried 1/3 cup instead, but it was just a smidge short of where I wanted to be. I've settled in between somewhere, with a slightly heaped 1/3 cup. This makes the pudding sweet, but not so sweet that you don't get a chance to savor the texture, which is the real star.

All tapioca recipes call for chilling the pudding, but I find I prefer it fresh off the stove. Once it chills it will set up fairly firm, so if you want beautiful individual serving portions I would recommend spooning it into your serving dishes while it's hot.

Tapioca Pudding (modified from Bob's Red Mill package - serves 4 easily)

1/3 cup small pearl tapioca
3/4 cup water
2 1/4 cups milk*
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs**
1/3 cup sugar, heaped a bit
1/2 tsp vanilla

:: Soak the tapioca in the water for at least 30 minutes in a medium saucepan.

:: Add milk, salt and eggs and cook over medium heat, stirring until you reach a boil. The pudding will start to thicken up relatively quickly at this point - the recipe tells you to simmer for an additional 10 - 15 minutes, but in my experience the pudding is plenty thick enough within a minute or two of reaching a boil. Remember that it thickens up even more as it cools.

:: Cool slightly, stir in vanilla. Serve, warm or cold. 

* Recipe calls for 2% milk, but I use 1% because that's what we have in the house. I'm sure you could use whole milk with stunningly creamy results. Non-fat will work too, but don't expect the flavor to be exactly the same. 

** Recipe tells you to separate the eggs, cook the yolks with the tapioca and milk and beat the whites into soft peaks before folding them back into the pudding at the very end of the cooking time. Personally, I find that to be a lot of fuss for a simple pudding and I'm happy without the extra work.

Golfers With Good Hearts

Imagine playing 100 holes of golf in one day! It sounds like a golf widow's nightmare. Instead, it's a way five guys who've known each other since high school are giving their hearts to the community.

Sheila here, and I want you to know about Cincinnati Golfers for Charity. Five men who met in school at St. Xavier High came up with the idea after participating in a 100 Golf Challenge event that had been hosted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation. It's morphed into a new charity. Each year, the CGC sets out to play 100 holes of golf in one day! Ahead of the event, the members raise as many dollars as they can from friends, relatives, peers, and anyone willing to donate. The funds raised are then divided up between the Make-A-Wish Foundation, as well as one other charity selected for that particular year, like Cancer Free Kids or the Arthritis Foundation.

This is the group's third year, and the guys and their supporters have already raised $250,000! Dave Geppert is one of the founders, and I met him this spring at a fundraising dinner. He and his wife Kara have been involved in the Make A Wish foundation, in part out of their gratitude for having a healthy daughter, Annie. Another founder, Matt Olson has a large family and a career, but he also finds time to give back to the community. These are guys with hearts bigger than the courses they play, and if you or some golfer you love is willing to spend a loooong Friday (12 hours!) on the greens and fairways, they'd love to have the help!

The CGC's next event is a golf-a-thon on June 4th at Hamilton County's Vineyard Golf Course. You can get involved or find out more about Cincinnati Golfers for Charity at www.cincinnatigolfersforcharity.com/

crayon totem poles

(the bunny makes me laugh, hee)

A sneaky tipster tipped me off about these awesome crayon sculptures, and they really tickled my fancy. How did they know how much I love totem poles? When we were little, the three of us Bloomers even tried to make our own totem pole in our backyard. In all seriousness concerning the crayons though (ha), the level of detail that the artist, Diem Chen, puts into these mini sculptures is incredible. If you go to her website, you can see that she actually models the crayon people after real people, and the crazy part is, they really do look the same! Very cool.

On a side note, I am suddenly reminded me of the time our dog Patches (I miss Patchie) ate our crayons, and made our yard VERY colourful afterwards. But alas, they were the prettiest dog poops I've ever seen (ewwww)!

{pics from Likecool.com via Diem Chen}

Katherine Sandoz

While in Savannah, I came across the paintings of Katherine Sandoz and fell in love with her abstract landscapes. They are gorgeous!

We are stripe-y

What we have been wearing ...

{shirt from urban outfitters, dress from old navy}

Not at the same time. I swear.

Francis and the Lights

Hello everyone, I hope you are having a lovely Spring. Here is a song that I am really digging called "Darling, It's Alright" by Francis and the Lights. The lead singer can really dance and their eclectic sound across numerous songs is refreshing. If you want to see more dancing and a bit of what seems to me a Prince influence, you should check out the clip below too, both music videos are directed by Jake Schreier, I love the use of light in both clips. Tell me what you think. You can get them on itunes here.



(via cliptip)

dining room decisions

Yesterday, after swimming and suntanning all day (ok, and maybe a little trampoline bouncing), Craigger and I decided to drive to our new house and peek in the windows to see what was up. It's done!! The cabinets, the tiles, it's all in! I am SO happy with the colours we picked for our kitchen: it looks so clean, fresh and white. And suddenly, the wave of extra excitement hit me. I can't wait to start living there! I have been trying to decide what kind of kitchen table I want...we're thinking of making one ourselves actually (sounds scary I know), but we'll see how that, or if that, actually works out! Here are some of my inspirations for the shape and designs that I covet...but oh, how to choose?! Sigh, so many options that I love. What do my 'Bloomers like?

I think this is still my all time fav look with a light table, light mismatched chairs, and our floor length black mirror propped against the wall. We might not be able to afford such a lovely rough table like this, so here are some other more economical options below ...{pic from Anne Sage}

West Elm has this really simple light wood table...i want funkier chairs than these, but I really love the simplicity and lightness of this dining room table. It will contrast nicely with our dark wood floors! {pic from West Elm}

Oh but then wouldn't a table like this be absolutely marvellicious? {from Remodelista}

I do dream of a wood top table with metal legs such as this, but all the welders I know are too busy to make it for me... {pic from architect Elizabeth Roberts}

... love love love the simple table with the coloured chairs. I think a soft blue, bright yellow and white would look super in our new house! {pic from Best House Design blog}

...maybe kind of like this mismatched chair set...i love that one bright yellow chair. I like the hanging lamp too but not in green. {from Second Hand Hannah via Marie Claire Maison}

...oh, but then how cool are these chairs? the black looks so nice with the blonde wood! {pic from Remodelista}

The big clock makes me feel happy floating there on the white walls. i also like the hanging pendant lamp over the table too. {pic from Remodelista}

... but I also love the hanging lamp over this table maybe even more! {from Marie Clair Maison}

Sigh again, the decision is going to be hard. We'll see what happens! Stay tuned for design inspiration for our little backyard patio...coming soon!

Historic Night for Reds

Hi it's Meghan:) I'm a little sleepy because I stayed up to go to the Reds game Monday night. It was a celebration to the team for making Major League history by being the first to play under lights.

Wow - The Reds organization did a great job with the tribute! They did everything from a live mascot race to selling cups of peanuts for 10cents.

The part I really liked was the game - for the first time I wasn't distracted by the modern day music, video or games. Even the scoreboard and rest of the video boards had just the basic information. I focused on enjoying the experience with my friends, listening to the old time organ music and watching the team playball. I got a sense of how watching baseball use to be.

I did a story leading up to the game by talking to some of the fans that were there that night. The two were boys then and 81 years young now:) They had some great things to say. Click here to watch my story

The weekend, briefly

Such a busy weekend and I didn't manage to take nearly enough pictures to capture it all. We had three birthdays + a graduation.

There was plenty of dessert.

{birthday scene, meringue peaks & birthday cake}

A teeny tiny amount of creative time (although not with the serger, which I don't know how to use - I just love the way it looks).

{serger, thread}

Some very worn out dogs.

{baxter + shauna}

Leftover birthday cake + tea for breakfast. Yum.

{leftover birthday cake}