Belly Baby Pics and Memememememe

First of all, for those of you that asked, pictures of the belly baby are here.

Also, Skamama asked me to fill out this meme:

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?

The summer of 1998 was the year I moved out of my parents' house. I lived in King of Prussia, PA with some other engineers (little known secret, your favourite Crabby Crafter has a BSEE). They all had jobs with Penn-DOT, but since I wasn't a PA resident, I had to fend for myself. I got a job with Pay USA as an administrative assistant and I also worked at the Record Revolution, which was very good for my ego and record collection, but not for my pocketbook. Despite working all those hours and being broke (KoP is an expensive town and all my extra money went to records rather than food), it was the best summer I'd ever had.

2. What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order)?

1. Try to finish knitting my Pixie Hat. Once it's finished, make a wee one for Belly Baby so we can be twins. No one will ever be able to tell us apart.
   
2. Write nlc_beads a thank-you myspace message. My favourite mascara, Maybelline Full N Soft in 'Very Black,' has been discontinued in this country and I've spent the past 6 months trying different mascaras and disliking them to varying degrees. Anyway, nlc_beads, who doesn't even wear make-up, sent me a wee package containing 2 tubes of said mascara (!!), one of her gorgeous handmade glass beads, and an ACEO (Art Cards Editions/Originals) by Lisa Luree/Bone*Diva. The card is a Día de los Muertos-style skeleton mom and baby and I love El Día de los Muertos! Thanks nlc_beads!
3. Go to the Post Office and pick up the package Parcelforce allegedly tried to deliver yesterday, even though I was totally home when they say they attempted to make the delivery.
   
4. I suspect I will do a load of laundry -- Belly Baby goes through a lot of diapers.
5. Watch an episode of Torchwood (I missed series 2 and am catching up).
   

3. Snacks I enjoy.

• Bagels with margarine or hummous.
• Soya yoghurt.
• Tea and toast.
• Olives.
• Triscuits (plain).
  
• Maple sugar candy.

4. Things I would do if I were a billionaire.

• Travel all over and eat out in vegan-friendly restaurants and leave big tips.
• Buy an espresso bar, grinder, etc. for my kitchen, so I can make really good coffee drinks.
• Buy air time on a TV channel and have my own Crabby Crafter television series.
• Get some custom-made hats that are really outrageous.
• Buy all my clothes from wee indie designers, etsy people, vintage shops, thrift stores, etc.
• Get a snooker table and a piano.
• Volunteer in Africa.
• Anonymously send money to interesting and nice people.
• Set money on fire.
• Throw money into crowds and watch people fight.
• Make the 'Happy Birthday' song public domain once and for all.
  
• Fill a bathtub full of money and get my picture taken in it.
• Get a bunch of people to teach me a bunch of different languages (notably Mandarin and German).
• Buy up all of The Beatles songs owned by Michael Jackson and give them back to Paul McCartney.
  
• Deck out my kitchen like super-fab and write a vegan cookbook.
• Hang out in Germany.
• Hang out in New Zealand.
• Buy a submarine.

5. Places I have lived.

• Lakewood, OH
• Willoughby Hills, OH
• Grove City, PA
• King of Prussia, PA
• Portland, OR
• Glasgow, Scotland
• Cove, Scotland

Is that all?

6. Jobs I've had.

• Babysitter (I was a rubbish babysitter).
• Stable girl at the 2-stall horse stables down the street from where my parents live.
• Computer Help Desk Receptionist.
• Hotel Housekeeper, Breakfast Room Ambassador, and Front Desk Chick.
• Plastic Factory Drone.
• Administrative Assistant.
• Record Shop Chick.
• Technical Assistant at a radio station.
• Electrical Engineer.
• Helped sell medieval/renaissance clothes at an SCA event in Mississippi..
• Christmas Decorator and Floral Designer.
• Graphic & Web Designer.
• Telemarketer for a scam job. (I quit when I caught on.)
• Barista.
• Ebay seller.
• Crochet Designer.
• Betting Shop Cashier.

I KNOW I've had more jobs than that...

Are you happy now, Skamama?

Birth Story -- Caution: Vulgar, Blunt, and Mildly Gory

Birth Story (not for the faint of heart)

Congratulations to jdm13 from livejournal who nailed it with her prediction stats.

Also, good guess, Braxto, who sent me a myspace message saying I would give birth on 30 May and then got the phone call that I'd popped.

5 days late, labour was an uncomplicated 13 hours, he has a decent amount of dark hair, weighed 6 lbs 13 oz, and he has slate blue eyes (which will change to brown or brownie-green soon enough). I swear no one in my family had blue eyes at birth (my mom says my little sister's were, although I totally thought they were black -- then again, I was 5 and that was 26 years ago), maybe it's Mark's anglo blood.

Anyway, labour kicked off at about 10 minutes to 2am (I told you I'd start going before I got a chance to get any sleep). Contractions were 8 minutes apart straight off the bat. After an hour, I phoned the hospital to ask when I should go in, they said to phone once contractions were 5 minutes apart. I thought I'd take a bath, but Mark had taken a shower and there wasn't a lot of hot water and even after 3 teakettles of hot water, the bath wasn't doing much for me and contractions were 5 minutes apart anyway. The hospital said to come on down, so we phoned an ambulance (you can do that in the country here) and by the time we arrived at the hospital (a) I was huffing on a little gas and air, which only took the very edge off contractions, but was great at keeping me focused (b) having contractions every 2-2.5 minutes. It was maybe a quarter to 7am at this point.

I'd been having reservations about giving birth in a hospital, but this was a great place -- my whole labour was midwife-led and no doctors were involved (they were on-hand in case of an emergency, but I only ever saw them in the hallway). The midwives were REALLY respectful of my birth plan and when shifts changed or new girls came in to assist or give other midwives a break, the more particular bits were pointed out (no episiotomy under any circumstances, no injection to help deliver placenta faster). The first thing they did was offer me a bath. My contractions were coming on hard and strong and -- okay, I wussed out on the original plan and took a morphine injection in the ass, okay!? I was shaking and mildly panicking from the strong and fast contractions. Anyway, they monitored the baby's heartbeat and the morphine (not to mention all my contractions throughout the labour) had no effect -- he was going strong.

Here's the thing about morphine -- like gas & air, it doesn't take the pain away at all, but takes the edge off it. I'm not sure it even took the edge off it in my case, but it helped calm me down from mild panic (I wasn't expecting the contractions to come on so hard and fast) to just gimping out over being in labour. Plus, it wore off in a couple hours. My next injection was due at noon and I didn't get one (although I would have taken one if offered). I was fully dilated by then and they had me try out a bunch of positions to get the baby further down the canal. The one I hated the most, left-side, worked the best. Those contractions were really painful and hurt my hips.

Eventually, it was time to push. Yeah, they really don't call it the ring of fire for nothin'. It was scary, but once his head started to poke out and they let me touch it (and that head of hair -- partially-birthed baby heads feel like boiled eggs), I started feeling a little more hopeful (I'd been pushing for a while -- it is exactly like taking a big shit). I was on my hands and knees when the head popped out and the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice so they had me flip over and sit up for the rest of the delivery. But really, once the head is out, it's all downhill. He looked a lot cuter than I thought he would. I'm not saying he's the cutest baby ever, but I've seen some downright scary newborns and I was expecting to have one of those. ;p

While Belly Baby and I did some skin-to-skin contact, the midwife helped deliver the placenta and Bertie took a big poop on me.

Other than that, my nipples are a little sore (the midwives say it's normal as I get used to breastfeeding and that he has a good latch), I have 2 VERY angry haemorrhoids, and a wiggling son who poops a lot.

Crafty Preggo Post

Eye-Scorching Baby Blanket
Originally uploaded by chloe & mark nightingale

No recipes in this post, although Mark and I did enjoy a delicious saffron risotto this afternoon.

Newborns don't have very good vision, but they do like high-contrast shapes and patterns. I figure my baby might like something interesting to look at, so I crocheted this for him. It's a little wonky on the upper-left, but he's a newborn and is hardly in a position to critique my handiwork.

It's the first blanket I've ever made! Now that I'm done, I can go into labour. ;p

Based on the patterns for a mobile from sleepingbaby.net.

BIG!
Originally uploaded by chloe & mark nightingale

Fully pregnant. I'm due tomorrow. Not the most flattering photo, but I figure everyone's looking at my belly and not my face so I don't need to wear make-up today. ;D

Sundried Tomato and Fresh Basil Risotto

Before we begin, there are 2 things you need to know about risotto: you need the right rice and you have to stir the bujeebus out of it constantly. Okay, I've posted a cheater's version that involves less stirring at the bottom of this post, but you do need the right kind of rice. The rice should be nice and chubby. Typically, you will use an arborio rice, but other risotto rices are vialone nano and carnaroli. But really, unless you are a rice connoisseur, stick to the rice that is labeled 'risotto' and you'll do just fine.

Also, another culinary trick: when using fresh lemon, before you slice, place the lemon on a clean surface (say, your counter or cutting board), whack it really hard with the palm of your hand, and roll it back and forth a few times. This will squish up the lemony innards and make it easier to juice.

If you don't like sundried tomatoes or fresh basil, there are many variations on the traditional risotto, a few of which will be covered at the end of the recipe. As long as you get the gist of how risotto works, you should be able to make your own variations with no trouble.

Vegetable Stock: Boil 1/2-1 chopped onions, 1-2 large carrots, a few stalks of celery (and leaves -- this is a good way to use the leaves and heart of celery if you are the sort who doesn't like to eat them raw), and 1/2-1 tsp of a dried mixed herb blend (such as Italian herbs, herbs de province, generic herb blend, etc.) in 4-ish cups of water for 30-60 minutes. I'm being vague here because stock is ready when it start looking more colourful and rich and the herbs have started to mingle and it smells ready. I'll go over that in a future post about soups and stews.

Note: In this case, you will just be using the broth from the soup so set aside the veg for another project or keep a little broth with the veg, add a little tomato paste, drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil, salt & pepper to taste, and you have yourself a little tomato and veg stew. Bonus!

Sundried Tomato and Fresh Basil Prep: Chop up a wee handful of sundried tomatoes (I use scissors) and dump them in a small bowl or mug. Cover in boiling water and set aside to soak. Chop 1-2 tbsp (or more if you are really into it) of fresh basil leaves (again, I use scissors for the chopping) and dump them on top of the sundried tomatoes (do not stir, do not drain -- we are using the liquid from this in the rice because it is tasty).

Rice:
Melt a couple knobs of margarine in the bottom of a pan on the higher end of low or the lower end of medium heat. Add your risotto rice and stir to coat. Add one ladle of vegetable stock (sans vegetables, like I said, we just want the broth) at a time, stirring until the stock is absorbed. This is going to take a while and your arm might get sore. Take a quick break from stirring to squeeze some lemon juice into the rice. Get back to ladling the stock and stirring the rice. The rice mixture should start to look creamy and begin to have a porridge-like consistency. Take a look at a grain of rice from the pan. Is the middle still white? If so, you aren't finished. Ladle, stir, repeat.
When your rice looks like it's almost finished, add the soaked sundried tomato and fresh basil mixture (liquid and all), a couple more knobs of margarine, another couple squeezes of lemon juice, and salt to taste. Stir well.

Portion out into bowls or plates and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil before serving.

A few notes -- if you don't fancy stirring your arm off, there is a way to cheat. Cook the rice in a little water or stock until it's al dente (there will still be a sliver of white in the middle of the rice grains and they will be 'firm to the bite') and then do the ladle & stirring trick until you're almost finished and follow the rest of the recipe from there.

This is not a low-fat recipe, but my goodness, is it delicious! If you wish to lower the fat content, use less margarine, drizzle with less olive oil, and use a teeny little bit more stock to make it wetter/creamier.

As an alternative to sundried tomato and fresh basil, you may wish to try [lemon zest, onion, and garlic] (add extra lemon juice to this recipe), [mushroom], [saffron and onion], [parsley and lemon zest] (add extra lemon juice to this recipe, too), etc. -- you get the idea.

Basic Barley Salad & Olive Oil Lecture

Before I begin, I have something to say about extra virgin olive oil. It doesn't matter if it's from Spain or Italy or Greece, but it has to be a first cold press. It has to say first cold press or first cold extraction on the bottle. It has to. Yes, it may be more expensive, but there is a serious difference in flavour. I could tell the difference blindfolded. No, rly. Srsly. There's a faint bitterness to non-first cold presses and the little fruity or peppery nuances are lost.
Now, buy the cheap extra virgin olive oil of you're going to cook with it -- people say not to heat it ever, but a cheap cooked extra virgin olive oil lends more flavour to a dish than a cheap regular old olive oil and the bitterness isn't noticeable once it's cooked.
But if you are going to pour an olive oil over something and not cook it, say, when you're doing a nice drizzle over a risotto or a soup or bread or salad, it has to be a first cold press! Also, keep away from light and heat.

I use this brand called San Leandro that I discovered at Morrison's. A 50 cl/16.9 fl. oz bottle costs less than £4 and it really is delicious.
I had a friend living in Italy with his aunt and uncle who made their own olive oil and posted me a litre and it was AMAZING, but my friend moved to Korea (hi, Eddie!), so I no longer have access to it's amazing peppery deliciousness. When Mark and I visited two of our friends in Spain (Andalusia -- Sevilla to be exact and remind me to post a delicious garbanzo tapa recipe that I ate along the way), even the olive oil in plastic bottles there was amazing. (Coincidentally, or not, the aforementioned San Leandro is Andalusian, too.)

And now on to the recipe.

I've had a serious thing for barley ever since I was a little girl. We sang a song in school about eating oats and barley with your uncle Charlie. My uncle Chuck heard about the song and, amused, showed up with a bag of barley the next time he came to visit.
I love the texture of barley -- it's so chewy. It does take absolutely ages to cook, but I think it's worth it. Plus, barley is a fun word to say. Barley. Barley. Barley!
This is my barley answer to the pasta salad.

Basic Barley Salad

Cook, drain, and rinse barley (a cup or so per serving), mix with finely chopped green olives, celery, and onion (a tbsp or so each per serving). Add lemon juice, cider vinegar, and extra virgin olive oil (I use equal parts, say a tbsp or so each per serving, but some people prefer 1 part each of lemon juice and cider vinegar to 2 parts olive oil). Salt & pepper to taste. Give it all a big stir, cover, and refrigerate overnight. I know you want to eat it right away, but it tastes so much better after you let all the bits and pieces mingle, trust me. Toss and serve. Eat.

Crochet Interview

Oh, hey! I've been interviewed by Kiba The Diva as part of her crochet Designer Interview series. Designer! Doesn't that make me sound cool?

So anyway, here is the linky link:
http://jossisahottie.com/kibathediva/?p=55

I know some of you are all thinking, speaking of crochet, Chloe, what the heck have you been crocheting lately? Well, I've been crocheting an eye-scorching black & white blanket for the ol' bun in the oven. They say newborns can't see very far or very much and, other than faces, they are all, "hey, check this out!" when they see stimulating black and white patterns. So the blanket will probably not be visually appealing to you, unless you are a newborn, in which case, what are you doing on the internet?!

Marvellous Mashed Potatoes

One year when I was living in Portland, Oregon, a bunch of my friends from college were living in Seattle (we all went to college in Pennsylvania, so it was loads of fun that we all ended up in the Pacific Northwest) and threw a HUGE Thanksgiving party. I brought a Tofurkey and helped with the pies and mashed potatoes. The lovely Laurel is responsible for enlightening me on making mashed potatoes and the ones we made that night were the best we'd ever eaten. Here's my version of that recipe.

Marvellous Mashed Potatoes:

1. Wash and cut (do not peel) red-skin potatoes, boil in water until soft.
2. In separate pan, fry finely chopped mushrooms and onions in olive oil -- toss in a tablespoon or two of an Italian herb blend (skip this if you are going to add fresh chives -- my preference -- or any fresh herbs) and some garlic (if you're so inclined).
3. Drain potatoes (you don't have to drain them completely), mash (you can use a potato masher, but that thanksgiving, we used the beaters from a hand-mixer).
4. Stir in contents of pan, [soy yogurt, soy sour cream, or unsweetened soymilk -- I prefer it with the soy yogurt], [non-hydrogenated margarine or olive oil -- I prefer olive oil], salt, pepper, and paprika (we used some orange-coloured spice mix with poppy seeds from the Market Spice at Pike Place in Seattle, and of course, I can't remember the name of it, but paprika is a fine substitution when, like me, you don't live in Seattle).
5. Add chopped fresh chives or chopped fresh herbs (along the lines of basil, oregano, etc.) and give everything one last stir before serving.