The chair was purchased for $45 at an estate sale over a year ago.



















We fell in love with the lines of it and didn't mind the upholstery, until the bottom fell out. Literally.













So, I began a search for new fabric.













And we settled this afternoon, on the following. Here's the front:



















And combined with the pattern that will be the back:

My sister-in-law Melissa shared some muffins with me the other day which were so yummy that I immediately had her write down the recipe. I tried them this morning, to great success! I invite you to try this yourself:

Melissa's Low-Fat Banana Muffins

Mix together:
4 ripe bananas - mashed up
2 eggs, beaten

In a separate bowl, mix together:
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
cinnamon (I used 2 tsp)
dash of nutmeg (my addition)

Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, then add
2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup milk

Pour into greased muffin cups and slide into an oven preheated to 350 degrees.
Bake for 20 minutes OR until you start to smell them - that's a better indicator of doneness. Good luck and enjoy!

Daddy went to a funeral this morning, and upon his return, Brooklyn smothered him with hugs and kisses.

Just a new duvet...something more colorful and funky for summer!

I have continued to put together Brooklyn's room, one piece at a time. And with a few exceptions, we're there. We have yet to paint the yellow mirror, the green chair and the wooden rocking chair, but other than that, we've made significant progress in the last week! I am so thrilled! I finally picked some bedding from Serena & Lily, bought some sheers from Pottery Barn, and Kyle and I completed the wall collage. Continuing our theme of a French room, we painted some flea market frames and filled them with our favorite Madeline prints. Here's the current version...

Ok, so I'm practically 37 weeks...here is the belly status. Definitely getting larger. It's really funny to see tiny body parts stretch my skin out into odd patterns. It looks like a creature trying to crack out of an egg. I had my first pelvic exam of the pregnancy, and was dilated to about a finger with really no effacement. Just some softening of the cervix. I'm hoping I can convince this little one to want to be born in about a week or two. As I emailed a good friend of mine the other day, it's kind of funny because me and three of my closest friends are all due within a week or two of each other. It's sort of like watching a horse race to see who crosses the finish line first. I suspect it will be my friend, Becky, who's pregnant with her 3rd child. :)

Ladies and Gentleman, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to Mr. Bundles. No, it is not the roly poly laundry man from the movie "Annie" whom Ms. Hannigan attempts to woo and seduce amongst the piles of dirty laundry - although that IS the namesake. It is, rather, Brooklyn's latest doll purchased from the Shaker Village gift shop in Kentucky. Why oh why this doll was named Mr. Bundles is a mystery to me, too. The two bear no resemblance and the doll is, in fact, a female. But the logic of a 2 year old is impossible to argue with, and besides, it gives the little homemade creature some pizazz and street cred. Which, God help her, she needs. I mean look at her. She's the epitome of homely.

I believe it has something to do with the impending arrival of a new sibling, although I couldn't say for certain. But Brooklyn's obsession with her pacifiers has reached an all-time high. She used to use them just for naps and bedtime, but lately, has insisted on their being available 24/7. I know there are some who are adamantly opposed to their use at any time, but I just really can't get all worked up about it. I had a blankie up until about a year ago at which time it apparently fell out of the car on a road trip to Sanibel Island. I still reach for it as I'm falling asleep every night and feel quite sad when I remember it isn't there. So if B wants her pacie right now, as things start shifting around, ok. Eventually she'll decide she no longer wants one. In the meantime, however, she has chewed her last 2 down to a pulp. To the point where I worried about her actually sucking a hunk of plastic down her throat and choking! So, we bought her a new pack of pacies and these are primo - pink and green with flowers and dragonflies. We're stylin. And apparently, there are moments when one just isn't enough.

On our list of must see places was Churchill Downs - home of the Kentucky Derby. I had no idea the place was so monstrous, and for some reason, didn't expect there to be live racing. Duh. We had intended to go to the Kentucky Derby Museum, but found ourselves sidetracked by the live racing! However, after paying to park, we realized we didn't have enough cash for the entry fees. As we opened our wallets and counted change, a precious grandmotherly woman working the season pass ticket booth waved us over and pressed two season pass tickets into our hands. We were so touched we both almost cried. I might have hugged her. We had great seats plus we were just 20 minutes pre-post time! We even got to see the horses parade into the paddock where they're saddled up and the jockeys hop on. Despite the blazing sun, we were thrilled to be so close to racing greatness. There was even a race with a horse entered named Ashley M. She was the favorite, and of course, just like Big Brown, did NOT perform as expected. I should have bet on the long shot.

But that's ok, I bet on a horse at Churchill Downs. While AT the park itself. Cool.

Brooklyn always admires Kyle's hats, so we bought one of her own. She digs it.

Does every zoo have a little bamboo forest? Seems like it. And not necessarily anywhere near the panda bears which is where I always feel they should be found.

Of all days, Brooklyn picked this one to get sick. It could have been the Chinese take out we'd had the night before. Hard to say. Kyle and I were unaffected somehow, if it was. In any case, she spent the morning and day puking intermittently. And I hate it when she gets sick because I feel powerless and my mind automatically jumps to the worse possible conclusion.

In between bouts of puking, she exclaimed over the animals, petted some goats, and played on a playground with other kids. So maybe we passed on our mysterious bug. hehe. I have no idea what was wrong with her, but fortunately I brought a change of clothes and we managed to make it through most of the animals before calling it quits.

After four days in Lexington, we decided it was time to move on. We deliberated about going to Cincinnati and visiting the aquarium, but just couldn't justify paying 20 bucks per adult and an additional $12 for Brooklyn! Maybe later. We had already planned to go to the Louisville Zoo, so that's where we went. Stopping along the way at the Jim Beam factory. We took the tiny little (free) self-guided tour, bought some bourbon chocolate as a souvenir and a sample pack of the various Jim Beam products as a thank you present for our neighbor who took care of our animals. Then, we checked into another Comfort Inn (directly next to Six Flags) and just chilled for the afternoon. Brooklyn was delighted to have a window view of the "train" aka roller coaster. For a girl who was practically weaned at amusement parks and on the wildest roller coasters, it was torture to see the thing twisting and twining and be unable to participate. Again, maybe later.

The day was incredibly hot. The sun beat down on us relentlessly, and the three of us quickly slurped up Brooklyn's leftover glass of lemonade, down to the last melting piece of ice. And after pushing Brooklyn's stroller up and down stairs, over the carcasses of thousands of cicadas, in and out of the various Shaker houses, we found ourselves facing a large open field of freedom. Slighty loopy from the heat, we watched Brooklyn run about and pluck daisies and clover. Had we been 2, we might have had the energy to join her frolicking. As it was, we just encouraged her.

To our immense surprise and delight, she plucked a clover, held it to her lips, and at the top of her lungs, bellowed "LADIES AND GENTLEMAN!" over and over. Had I not been 33 weeks pregnant, I would have literally fallen on the ground and just rolled with laughter. It was one of those once in a lifetime moments that you just can't replicate.