"Melt in your mouth" & all over my daughter

We had an enrichment activity at our house last night, so I moved the M&M dish from the window ledge to the end table. Unfortunately I forgot to move it back to the window sill this morning.I was putting away the groceries in the kitchen when I heard the "clink clink" of the M&Ms. I went over to find Mckinlay loading mint M&Ms handful after handful into her already stuffed mouth with red/green slobber goo all over her, the table and the couch. Awesome.

Like mother, like daughter

The tree has been up for 5 days now and this has only happened once--so far.
I turned my back for, not even 2 seconds, then down it came. Right on top of her. It scared her so bad, I thought she might have lost interest in the tree for a while. Not the case. As soon as I stood it up again, she went right for it.
But, how can I blame her. How can we expect an 11 month old little girl to not be interested in a big tree covered in lights and little toys? When I was a kid, my mom set up a perimeter of chairs around the tree to keep me away. If we had the room, I'm sure I'd do the same thing.
And speaking for the similarities between Mckinlay and I--I have a bunch of homemade ornaments that I've made through the years that have pictures of me on them. We all know that Mckinlay definitely looks like me, but holy cow does she ever! You totally see her in all of my old pictures. It's crazy!! Here are a few examples. These aren't the pictures on the tree, but you get the idea.
*update* problem solved.

"Pee-pee teepee for the sprinkling wee-wee"

This was the sponsored link above my gmail account. So naturally I had to click on it and see what on earth a "pee-pee teepee" is.
If I had to choose, I think I'd go for the camo print. Maybe it would help disguise the fact that I am trying to shield my sweet little boy from wee-weeing me in my face!?
I mean seriously, the time you take to place this nice little "teepee" on, couldn't you just have changed the diaper already? I don't know. Maybe once we have a boy I'll be wishing I ordered some.

Taking Shape

I've been stewing over the fabric choice for these little guys forever and finally decided to just choose and get goin'. I think I'm happy with my choice. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

(Glad I have my project while Ty is watching the BYU vs. Utah game! Go Cougs!)

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Hooray for Thanksgiving! We hope you all have a lovely day filled with family, friends and super good food!!

XXXOOO,

Ty, Megs and the little turkey

And just in case you are still looking for a fabulous Thanksgiving dessert--here you go! Leave it to Ina to come up with something delicious!

Pumpkin Banana Mousse Tart - Barefoot Contessa

Crust:

2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 14 crackers)

½ cup sugar

¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ lb. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

½ cup half-and-half

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree

1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

¾ tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

3 extra-large egg yokes

1 package (2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin

1 ripe banana finely mashed

½ tsp. grated orange zest

½ cup cold heavy cream

Decoration:

1 cup (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream

¼ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Orange zest (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter in a bowl and mix well. Pour into an 11-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press evenly into the sides and then the bottom. Bake for 10 minutes and then cool to room temperature.

For the filling, heat the half-and-half, pumpkin, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a heat proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until hot, about 5 minutes. Whisk the egg yolks in another bowl, stir some of the hot pumpkin mixture into the egg yolks to heat them, the pour the egg-pumpkin mixture back into the double broiler and stir well. Heat the mixture over the simmering water for another 4 to 5 minutes, until it begins to thicken, stirring constantly. You don’t want the eggs to scramble. Remove from heat.

Dissolve the gelatin in ¼ cup water. Add the dissolved gelatin, banana and orange zest to the pumpkin mixture and mix well. Set aside to cool.

Whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture and pour it into the cooled tart shell. Chill for 2 hours or overnight.

For decoration, whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitter with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks. Pipe or spoon the whipped cream decoratively on the tart and sprinkle, if desired, with orange zest. Serve chilled.

This tart can be made a day or two ahead and kept refrigerated. Decorate it with whipped cream an hour or two before serving.

I'm in stitches over here!

B (who is now a blogger, hooray!) just sent me this. I wish I could add it directly to the blog, but just click here. I laughed so hard, I cried.

Mckinlay and Addy definitely DO need those little elf shoes now!

Check.

-Stitch names on Christmas stockings. Check.

(This was a top priority since you know the Christmas decorations are coming out the day after Thanksgiving...or sooner.)

Elf Shoes

I found a darling new blog (well, new to me) this morning. As soon as I saw this, I knew I had to make one. Or two. Or more....

Hello little elf shoe!AND it is totally the right size for my little elf! I know these aren't so much made for walking, but you know a photo shoot is inedible don't you? Can't you just see little Mckinlay and Addy Lou in their matching Christmas jammies and elf shoes? I know, right!?

Happy shoe making everyone. The pattern is right here.

The Not-So-Secret Anymore Pictures

Am I losing my touch? Some of my recent attempts to surprise Ty have failed. Is he getting more snoopy? Am I getting sloppy? Maybe neither. Maybe both.

I took a bunch of the most adorable pictures of Mckinlay in the fall leaves that I was going to use in a fabulous Christmas surprise, but guess who discovered them from their super-secret-hidden-folder on the computer? I know! I was so disappointed!

Oh well. Since he found them, I might as well share some of them with you, my blogging friends. Enjoy and happy fall!
(I know this on is already in the blog header, but seriously. Couldn't you just look at it all day?)

P.S. Sorry for the not-so-regular blogging as of late. I've been busy Christmasing and creating. I wish I could post all the fun things that have been brewing at the Loveless abode, but then it would take away the surprise for those receiving said creations.

Random Friday.

Whit tagged me for 6 things about myself. Let's see...

1. I love making lists. Not just a regular "to do" list for every day stuff, but lists in preparation for things. Like a "what I need to get done before Christmas" list. I get really excited for holidays and fun occasions and half the fun is the planning and gearing up for it.

2. My pointer fingers on both hands are quite "curved" ("curved" sounds nice than "crooked" no?) and because of this my nick-name is "lucky sevens". Why you ask? Because if I ever wanted to raise my finger in the air and chant "We're #1!" It wouldn't fly because it would look like I was boosting that "We're #7!" Not so cool. Most of you know this nickname, I think, but did you know that Ty considers "the sevens" to be my handicap? According to him they are the reason I will never be incredible at sports ("they interfere with your grip") and why I can't knit.

3. Deep ocean freaks me out. I can't watch shows about the ocean because I am always afraid a scary sea something will come out of nowhere. The anticipation is too much and I totally psych myself out. Even finding Nemo. I totally love that movie, but I'm always a little nervous when he goes to "touch the butt." I like the beach. I'm totally fine swimming within the reef, but scuba diving--NO WAY JOSE.

4. Speaking of my Finding Nemo worries--No matter how many times I watch a movie or read a book I still think there is a chance something different will happen than what has happened before. Like Maybe this time Beth won't die or Terry won't get hit by a car on the way to the Empire State Building. I'm such a sucker.

5. I don't miss working. Everyone said I would have a hard time adjusting to staying at home. Nope. I love it. This is what I was made for.

6. I always have to have a project (or several) in the works. I need to have something to do with my hands or to keep my mind going if I'm watching TV (with the exception of Pushing Daisies and The Office.) You should see my apartment right now. The sewing machine is prema-out until Christmas and all my projects are scattered on top of all the bookcases (so the little hurricane doesn't get at them). It's great fun though and Ty doesn't seem to mind. Right honey?

I tag:
Kristen
Melanie
Megan
Annie
Jenn
Emily B.

Since this turned into 6 random things about me, how about a random picture?
Yeah, I know, not the most flattering of photos, but if you look carefully, you can see the "sevens." This was taken 8 years ago on a trip to NYC with my mom and daddy. If you look even closer you will notice that the up arrow on the elevator is not pointing up. As soon as I noticed it I said "Going my way?" So naturally we had to take pic.

Happy Friday.

Tum-tum-ta-ta!

"Meghan, why are you posting a picture of your foot and hairy leg?" you ask.
No, no my silly friends, this is a picture of my new pom socks!
Again you ask, "Why are you showing us your sock Meghan?"

Well, this is a momentous occasion. Yesterday I bought myself some new socks! If you are wondering why this is exciting, I'll have you know I haven't bought new socks since....let's see...the last time I bought new socks I was working at Copper Rivet and Channy and I went and bought knee high tube socks together. That was my freshman year of college, so 6 years ago! I have not bought new socks for 6 years! Yikes! I mean, those tube socks are still so great, but I think the new sockage was long overdue.

I can already feel it. Mckinlay, pom and I are going to have a great day!

*correction* Ty gave me a pair of knee high argile socks for Christmas 2 years ago. They are by far my favorite socks and I have been known to wear them two days in a row. Is that gross? Don't answer.

Perks in the Berks

Last weekend we drove out to Richmond, MA with Kristen, Emma and the Fillmores. Kristen's employers have a vacation home out there that we could all stay in. It was so fun to stay in a real house and it is so beautiful out there! The leaves were still so pretty and the air was crisp. It was just the kind of weather you would want for a trip to the Berkshires.

We had lots of good food, (even if I did burn the brownies) played games, read a lot of trivia and Guiness World Records books, Ty got a nap (surprised?) and we even got to play a little tennis--and I mean "play" in the loosest sense of the word 'cause remember it was me "playing".

Thanks for a great weekend Kristen! And here is my favorite picture of the weekend. Gotta love Emma!! This girl, who has been walking since she was 9 months, swaggers around the house with both her hands on her hips and just never stops! She is constantly on the move and is such a hoot. What a doll!

We Heart Halloween

Mckinlay is a big Halloween fan. She was in heaven all day yesterday. The first thing she did this morning was crawl over to her costume and have us put it on her.
We started off our Halloween by going to two of my favorite places Wilson Farms...
...and Mount Auburn Cemetery for a photo shoot in the fall-ness.
I'm mean really. Is there a better place to go on Halloween than to the cemetery? And maybe it helps that this is one of the most beautiful-non-spooky cemeteries out there.
We went trick-or-treating in Brighton Center with Anna, Pauly, Marcus and Brooklyn (and Melanie and Brianne).
Shortly after this picture was taken I heard Mckinlay going "ummm, ummm, ummm" and I looked down to see that she had discovered how to unwrap one of the suckers in her hand. She was going to town on it. It was pretty funny. When she finished it (it took her about 3 mins. tops) someone put a Kit-Kat in her hand. I figured that one was safe. WRONG:
We had soup with bugs in it and eyeball sammies for dinner. Mckinlay really like her grasshopper and she really was trying to eat it. It was pretty funny to watch. If I were Grandma Hallstrom, the bugs would not just be in the soup, they would be baked into the brownies (but remember how we went to Wilson Farms? So obviously we had apple cider and cider donuts for dessert instead) and we would not have regular utensils to eat our dinner with. I can still remember trying to eat spaghetti with a spatula as a kid. Oh Grandma. And remember her witch? I can remember that screeching noise like it was yesterday. Sigh.
We went to a cupcake party after dinner and Mckinlay discovered how much she like mac and cheese out of other people's bowls and that frosting tastes much better if you smear it all over your face as well and get some in your mouth.

I love Halloween and it is so much more fun now that we have our little goblin around (as I'm sure is obvious by the number of pictures in this post)!