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textAug 17, 2012 5:08 pm
Two Months Later
…and I finally have time to post anything more than someone else’s videos!
The last two months have been chalk full of my little north-facing office, ignoring the beautiful (at last!) weather outside as I draw more and more lines to try and form a believable three-dimensional interior space out of paper and graphite. One of my classes, spatial design, pushed us beyond assumptions about rectangular spaces into realms of experimental hospitality design - a place where fanciful has every right to become wondrously real. You can see more of my final project, the Caldera Resort & Spa, here at my interior architecture/design blog.
While I’ve been inside rendering, our garden has been outside growing, no thanks to me and the number of times I forgot to water it while Alex and Jasper were out of the house, leaving it quiet for me to study. Despite all unintentional attempts to the contrary, we have fruits to show for our “efforts.”
Shortly after this photo was taken, Jasper had eaten all but a strawberry and a cherry tomato that Alex and I managed to share. That moment confirmed the existence of miracles, as the fruit actually tasted amazingly well-maintained. Hooray!
Since my finals ended I’ve spent a lot of time recuperating (and by that I mean plowing through the second and third Hunger Games books) and hanging out with my absolute loves.
This man of mine is such a gem - his kindness and compassion for my task as a grad student has been so comforting and supportive, his enthusiasm and encouragement for my designs and effort absolutely motivating, the love and humor with which he interacts with our son is heart-warming to say the least, and the importance and dedication he places on serving his community all the while is a quality I aspire to emulate as well as he does. Suffice it to say, I would not be halfway to a Masters degree were it not for his dedication to striving toward nobility as a husband, father and community member.
And our boy, Jasper. Oh, my. There are hardly words to describe the love I have for him, and the amazement I feel at his steady progress from baby to toddler and soon stalwart little lad.
There is no end to his smile, laughter and jokes, unless, that is, I ask him to smile for the camera.
Hmph.
Well. What he may lack in stage presence, he makes up for in sweetness, joyfulness, yes, a fair dose of mischievousness (he is Alex’s son, afterall), incredible curiosity, and his love of words. Geeze, this boy can talk!
He recently told me that I needed to put my feet down and my plate back on the table, as I sprawled across a dining room chair, trying to get comfortable after hours of sitting at my desk.
Obviously, the boy is not inhibited. The other day my family took him to the zoo. As was related to my by my parents, Jasper stood at the glass watching a polar bear swimming around in the water, trying to cope with the impressive heat of the day. A mother and her child stood near by and she asked her son, “Do you see the bear?”
Jasper turned to her and corrected emphatically, “Polar bear.”
Later my mother pointed out the cougar. Jasper similarly turned to correct her, “Noooo, itsa big kitty-tat!”
Well, you can’t win ‘em all.
Unleeeeeeeess we’re talking about gluten-free Finnish pancakes. In that case, yes, yes. We have won.
My dear aunt, Dianne, and uncle, Frank, were here for three days on their way back home to the east coast after a trip through Western Canada. They are some of my favorite people in the world, humorous, incredibly loving and generous, encouraging, and simply a lot of fun. I could hang out with them all the time were we closer to one another. We don’t all get to see a lot of each other as it is, and so visits of this nature are celebrated with lots of galavanting and special meals, like Finnish pancakes (a traditional breakfast treat that’s basically a crepe, which we top with powdered sugar and whipped cream, or lingon berry jam and whipped cream, or pureed berry blend with, yes, whipped cream).
My mom made some for all of us a few mornings ago.
What with all of the magical ability that I am convinced my mother is in possession of, she managed to create Finnish pancakes in all their subtle sweet-saltiness out of (gluten-free!) brown rice flour and a touch of xanthan gum. But THAT I will have to describe in further detail in another post.
Quite obviously, they were delicious.
And now I know how to make Finnish pancakes for myself any time I want. Thanks, MOM.
This month of vacation is off to a decidedly good start.
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photoJun 06, 2012 9:26 pm
Oh my gosh. Does anybody need some kale?! Haha. I guess now we know what happens in the garden if ya go away for the weekend.
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photoMay 22, 2012 11:59 am
Something to strive for. …actually, this is my dream. We’ve got our garden planted, so far! And improveed perception of farmers’ market costs compared to the grocery store (have you seen that study? I’ll have to refind it and post it) will, I think, encourage us to eat more locally.
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photoMay 21, 2012 8:29 pm
Harvesting dinner in the rain. I love our little garden! We planted tomatoes, purple cabbage, onions, cucumber, dill, basil, cilantro, and strawberries last weekend, too. Yummmm.
