Amber Dusick

Waiting...

Waiting...
for the hundreds of lemons on our lemon tree to ripen.

Waiting...
to move into our new house. 
We are being overtaken by boxes, boxes everywhere.

Waiting...
for baby. 
This pretty much sums up how very "end of pregnancy" I feel lately:

In the wise words of my toddler,
"It is hard to wait!"

Through the lens of an almost three year old...

My little guy got a digital camera for his birthday from his uncle and he is constantly snapping photos.  A toddler photographer in the house makes for funny candid photos when you aren't, you know, expecting it.  I'll be casually changing my clothes, picking my nose or going to the bathroom...and in he walks with the damn (I mean cool, amazing, awesome) camera. 

 

This camera doesn't take the best photos indoors.  Even with the lame excuse for a flash they are always blurry and dark.  I rather like the spooky quality of this one below though.  (I swear, I wasn't just picking my nose in this one.  Honest.  In fact, I'm texting my husband...probably asking him when he'll be home and what we should do for dinner.  I'm more of a nail biter than a nose picker anyway.  Ah, my secret bad habit revealed.  The nail biting that is.  Not the texting...that is pretty rare.)

Outdoors is where the camera really shines (like most small lens crappy cameras) and these are some of my recent favorites that he took over the last few days:

I love how at his height, the perspective is lower.  Since he hasn't "learned" to take "proper" photos of people, the frames are cropped in unusual ways.  A photo of just my legs somehow seems to capture more of "me" than a posed photo ever would.  This is like a little glimpse into how he sees the world and it feels very precious and fleeting. 

I can honestly say this has made me rethink my own photography and see it in a whole new light.  I'm so inspired!     

Raspberries & Apples: Fall is here!

We spent the weekend in Oak Glen, CA where we picked raspberries to our hearts content, hung out in apple orchards and sampled fresh cider and apples all afternoon at various farms.  I was really hoping to go into labor while in an apple orchard.  Something very romantic sounding about that.  Alas, nothing happening here.  I sure got lots of funny comments all day though.     

Oak Glen was one of the areas recently threatened by all the Southern California wildfires.  In fact, just across the road from this area is burnt to a blackened crisp.  I'm so thankful the orchards were unharmed.  Handmade signs dotted the roadsides everywhere expressing thanks. 

You'd think that in having our own apple tree now we wouldn't be silly enough to buy apples, right?  Um, no.  After hanging out around the apple tasting bar below we came home with two huge boxes.  I can't resist a gravenstein.  Or a bushel of them.  Or two.   

Obsessed with not letting them go to waste, I've spent most of the last 24 hours making apple pie filling to freeze (raspberry pie filling too for that matter), apple molasses muffins and apple almond butter cookies to freeze.  Next up are apple gorgonzola turnovers to freeze. 

I've become obsessed with filling my freezer for the coming weeks.  If anyone has any great post-partum freezer meal ideas for me I'm all ears.  As it is now, all I've got are sweets!  Which isn't a bad thing, I've been on a uber-healthy no sugar/no simple carbs pregnancy diet for nine months now.  I can't wait to crack into my freezer stash.  Oh yeah, and I'm excited to meet the baby too.  But sugar!  Here I come! 

Autumn Family Manifesto: Simple & Cozy

To kickoff each season, we create a new family manifesto.  We gather together and write down a handful of things we want to focus on for that upcoming season.  I've come to love this tradition, it is a wonderful check-in and guides us down the path that we want to stay on.

This upcoming autumn, we are keeping it really simple.  In past seasons, we've had goals like "grow something edible" or "do art for the sake of doing art" but this season we know better than to be ambitious with moving and welcoming a new baby happening at the same time. 

Autumn 2009 Family Manifesto

1. Welcome the season into our home

2.  Homemade pumpkin pie & caramel apples

3.  More outdoor cooking & dinners under the stars

4.  Cozy up around the fireplace with hot cocoa

5.  Pumpkin patch & pumpkins! (this one was my son's contribution)

 

It amazes me that my son always has something appropriate to add, he really "gets it" when we have this seasonal manifesto talk and I think he enjoys being a part of it.  The very first time we did this he wasn't yet two and his contribution was "More Pancakes!" which was rather poignant since we only tend make pancakes on special lazy weekends when we are all at home for breakfast.  It really said a lot without saying much. 

If you decide to start this tradition with your family, try to keep your list small.  A list that gets too long tends to just become a "to do" list and will be harder to remember.  Focus on fun things (rather than tasks like cleaning out your rain gutters) so it stays fun for everyone.  Remember, every family member should be involved!     

We write our seasonal list while having a seasonal kick off celebration, so everyone gets in the mood.  For example, we wrote our Spring list during the first spring picnic in a park, the Summer list was written at the beach and our Autumn manifesto discussion was perfectly accompanied by apple pie and a late night walk in crisp air.  We write it up and then tack it to the fridge or the front door. 

PS - yes, I know Autumn hasn't officially started yet.  Not for what, another 2 weeks?  We just couldn't wait this year!     

What are you hoping to focus on this Autumn with your family? 

And now he is three! (well, not really but who is counting)

Since my due date is just a few days away from my son's third birthday, we decided to play it safe (aka - get it over with so I don't have to stress about it) and have his birthday party early this year.  I would have felt eternally guilty if I had to cancel his party or not be there.

 

On the way to the party...please notice our outfits.  Why?  Because he picked them out.  Yes folks, he insisted that I wear that purple skirt for his special day.  "It looks pretty Mama, I like it" was something I couldn't say no to. 

And now for the classic cake shot.  Wait, it gets better.  This penguin cake has a story.  Not the part where he loves penguins and all that boring stuff.  No, the disaster part.  The part of the story that proves I am a terrible baker but crafty in a pinch at the same time.

 

He loves cooking, so the night before at about 11:00PM (the only time you can use the oven in our non-air conditioned 90+ degree apartment) we all donned aprons and according to him "And now we're all chefs!"  Well, we tried.  The cupcakes we're working on here turned out great. 

The penguin though?  Not so great.  It is the popular (at least in my secret circle) Amazon Cake recipe that has been described as foolproof.  Not sure what that says about my baking skills.  Yes, my pan was deeper so I knew I'd need to lengthen the cooking time a bit longer than the 30-35 minutes suggested.  We cooked this bad boy for an hour and forty minutes and did that "stick a toothpick in, comes out clean" trick and everything.  We thought we were safe.  The edges were burnt to a crisp at this point (we had to trim them off) so we had to have faith and remove it from the oven before it got worse. 

When we unmolded it?  Hollow.  Pure liquid pudding in the center.  Shit.  So I did what any crafty person would do and allowed myself to panic for about five minutes (thus forgetting to take a photo) and then scooped out the liquid pudding and frantically stuffed the penguin with torn up bits of three cupcakes as shown above.  At this point it was past midnight.

So check it out!  A fancy schmancy stuffed cake!  Why yes, I totally planned that.  A few impressed people said, "Oh how did you do that?"  Okay, only one person asked that.  But still.

It wound up being like a marble cake.  And damn tasty too.  Phew.

Next year?  No cake!  I grew up having pumpkin pie for my birthday every year (I'm not a cake fan...perhaps this is why I'm no good at this?) and this year my son, after taking a few bites of the cake, said, "I don't really like cake, Mama."  I think we'll get creative next year.

 


   

Encouragement & Homebirth

We had our in home visit last night with our midwives & doula and I now officially have the "go ahead and go into labor" green light for a home birth.  It feels amazing to "be here" in this place, this place of  waiting, excitement and anticipation.  (PS - my due date isn't for another 3 weeks, so don't expect any sort of announcement like, tomorrow or anything)

The difference between getting prenatal care at a hospital (which I did with my first pregnancy) and getting care from midwives can be summed up nicely in this photo from last night:

Above are my two midwives "listening to the baby" in my son's belly, everybody laughing, sitting on my couch with my big fat black cat hanging out behind them.  What a stark contrast to sitting in a sterile waiting room for an hour to be poked and prodded by a different nurse every time and seeing the doctor for all of five minutes.  I hate hospitals.  I hated going to appointments even.  With my midwives and doula I feel strong, supported and encouraged.   

Speaking of encouragement, I've also been meaning to share about how touched I was when a group of mamas (that I've never met from the NaturalKids Team and coordinated by Chris) sent me these lovely tokens of support for my homebirth VBAC.  Many of them have birthed at home themselves and to feel the outpouring of "you can do this!" was so uplifting and exactly what I needed that particular day when the package arrived.

Just look at these beautiful items (much of it handmade) I received along with cards of encouragement:

 

These items will all be out where I can see them during labor to remind me of the power and community of women and mamas who have "been there".  Thank you guys!      

 

Fall Nesting: Carving Out My Creative Space

Over the years, in a multitude of apartments, I've made do with creative space.  Closets and corners of rooms were the most common, but whatever the space I've wound up with, I've always loved it and made it beautiful.  My most recent garage space was the largest I've ever had and I loved being in there.  Stepping out of my house and into my own space made me feel like a real artist or something.  Working in a dusty garage studio felt gritty and urban.  I liked it.   

So now presented with my very own room in the house that we are moving into I'm ecstatic!  We've made some progress on it over the last few months but now that fall is here I'm itching to really make it mine.  Something about fall that makes me want to get everything in order to cozy up for the winter.

What it looked like when we bought the house:

Don't you love that brown carpet?  Me neither. 

Goodbye carpet.  We ripped it all up ourselves.  It was hard work!

This is what it looks like now.  My fall nesting project!

Next, we removed the shutters and 70s curtains and realized it is actually a very bright and sunny room!  I painted it a very happy green.  I love green like this, it makes me feel like a thriving, growing plant. 

Since I've never had a room to myself inside the house I have no real furniture for it.  Certainly nothing that matches.  I do have a sewing machine, fabric and boxes of art supplies looking for a home.  A "book shelf from here" and a "table from there" will be how I outfit this room and I'm sure thrift stores and spray paint or sanding will be involved.  For a while, I was stuck like a deer in headlights.  I needed a plan, a vision. 

• Light pine book shelves lined with wooden crates and baskets for storage
• Desk - I have a pine table that I will sand down, it will be perfect
• Colorful art on the walls
• Sheer curtains to let the natural light in
• Lighting!  I do all my work in the wee hours of the night so a couple lamps will be essential.  
• Rug - A rug under a chair in a corner will soften the room and make it cozy 

Stay tuned to see how this room progresses! (and to see how close to my "plan" it turns out to be) 

What are you making cozy for fall?

PS - This post is part of the FALL NESTING PARTY at the Inspired Room and my entry towards winning a $200 GIFT CARD to Homegoods!!!  Go check out all the fall nesting going on and post your own room that you are working on for your chance to win.  That $200 sure would come in handy.  Lamps!  Curtain sheers!  Oh my!

Work (still) in Progress Wednesday: Simple Dry Pantry II

So three Wednesdays ago I mentioned my goal for having a simple dry pantry.  Progress has been made!  Well, with the help of planning to move to a new house, that is.

First, let me show you what I've been working with for the last five years in our apartment:

 

The problem?  See how between the washer/dryer and trash cans there is less than 1 foot clearance to reach the food on the bookshelf?  Well, considering I'm much MORE than 1 foot wide right now that this pantry is not very "huge pregnant lady" friendly.  At all.  Getting something from the bottom shelves involves moving both trash cans which can be hard when full and weigh 300 pounds. 

Sometimes I can bribe my almost 3 year old to grab something for me...but when I ask for pears he often fetches black beans and vice versa so this isn't always an efficient solution.   

 

Progress!  I made labels finally.  Photoshop + sticker paper.  I printed 100 of them and will keep them in a tiny envelope taped to the inside of my new pantry so a fresh label will always be at hand when needed.  Now I just need to get more mason jars.  And you know, move.  

 

And last, but not least...here is a sneak peak of the pantry that we've been working on in the new house.  This was once a dingy bathroom that we gutted this summer so it has come a long, long way. 

  

Look!  It even has a real light fixture.  That turns on with a switch, rather than a bare bulb with a pull string!  Oh boy, we will be living in luxury.  Seriously, I feel like I don't deserve this. 

So why the obsession with pantries?  Because I'm nesting, people.  A well stocked and organized pantry is one of those simple things that makes me feel safe and secure.  Don't you feel better and more "at home" after a trip to the grocery store?

"Even the most resourceful housewife cannot create miracles from a riceless pantry."  Chinese Proverb

Or more accurately in my case:

"Even the most resourceful housewife cannot cook anything if she is too wide to fit in the pantry and  reach the damn rice."