I made bread again OR Much more than a bun in the oven OR I finally told Susan Or Surprise! I'm going to have a baby in less than two months!

Yes, you read that ridiculously long title correctly.

I made bread again.



Your basic Tassajara whole wheat. Took most of a day, but I loved the process and following the illustrations that go along with the recipe. Learned a lot, and it tasted good too.

AND, it's true. I am teetering on the verge of being VERY pregnant with less than two months to go until we welcome a new baby into our family.



There were extremely subtle hints already out there, like the watercolor I made for Jeff this past Valentine's.

I've thought many times about putting this news out here. But the honest truth is, I had not yet told Susan, (college roommate of 3 out of 4 years,) and it didn't feel right to announce it here before I told her. Well, who knew when that was going to be? Until today when she called me to share that she herself is pregnant (Congratulations!) and I was able to, simultaneously, get completely busted and share our good news.

Briefly: All is well. Baby's due mid-June. Calder's going to be an awesome big brother. I'm feeling good. Jeff is too. (Though he did have two wisdom teeth pulled on Friday and has been on pain medication for a few days.) And this pregnancy - especially now - has been all about the big projects. Many a plan has been dreamed and schemed, only some of which has actually happened. House projects, you know. They can be expensive. But, ah, nesting... I'm building a big one folks!

I've got a plan for the bathroom, some of which I can experiment with myself. Like most big project I take on it's heavily weighted on the re-used materials side. We'll see how that goes. But I'm excited to try my idea and share it here too. And we're on the carpenter's schedule for the garage/studio conversion. Major cleaning and clearing for this took place a couple weekends ago.



Project #54: New dining room tabletop re-purposed from a campus surplus find from years ago.

Also, this baby has been knit for. I tell you! Perhaps a post on that next. I'm just about ready to cast on again. Finally knitting is fun and productive!



A rare shot (this time around) of the belly at the yarn store.

The garbage disposal and dishwasher both work now. Though I was enjoying the hand-washing. I finally got some onion sets in the ground, and assisted Jeff in the planting of some lovely hand-me-down hostas, a vine maple and native dogwood. Still need to put in some peas and those potatoes with all the eyes that have been waiting so patiently in the garage.

Yes, the list is long, but I'm motivated. And this little loaf (quite a bit more than a bun at this point) will, I trust, spare me just a bit more time to try to cross off another item or two before the grand appearance. Wish us luck!