Baby Details

 Finally the details...

My husband was set on having an A name.  Although I had others I was lobbying for, he fell in love with:

Anna-Katherine Eleanor

Anne was my late mom's middle name.
Katherine was the name my parents had as a runner up for me when I was born.
Eleanor was my mom's mom.  My grandmother who passed away a couple months ago.

My husband said that he thought it was neat for her to be named after strong women who came before her.

So, Anna-Katherine Eleanor Lipsky. We'll call her Anna-Kate.

She was born on 4/24/17 at 6:25pm.
Weight 8 pounds 8 ounces
Height 21 inches
Head 14 inches

We are all smitten with her.  Her daddy in particular.

Welcome Baby Girl!

My view from here...

Well worth the wait!  Our little bundle of absolute perfection. Born yesterday evening, April 24, 2017.

Proud to say that she came on her own, 17 days overdue (it was really important to me for her to come on her own and I advocated hard for trusting my body and my baby to come when all was ready, so thankful it worked out!). Out of our three, she was definitely the hardest in coming!  My husband is truly the world's best birth coach. Couldn't have done it without him. She's here and will meet her big brother and sister soon.

We are mostly sure on the name now, just need to tell our family first. I need to get all the stats from the nurses to share. I was mighty wiped out yesterday, so lots is a blur.

Today I have the world's most perfect little blessing to snuggle. And I'm so thankful for this sweet little girl.

Plow Day

Good thing there was no baby today, we would have missed this!

Earth Day 2017

 Picked a couple bags of roadside trash.

 Washed up our tie dyes from the library program this week.

 And played and played and played.

 While I waited and waited and waited.  No baby yet. Not a bad spot to be parked for the afternoon, though!

"Mounds" Cake

 Audra and I made this cake a couple weeks ago. I loved the idea of the cake but the original recipe from here called for SO much sugar and the frosting called for double the butter I'd add.  And complex directions. We made the cake with a TON less sugar than what was called for and it was still so good!

Here's our adapted version.

Mounds cake

2 eggs
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup veg oil
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup cocoa powder
1 3/4 cup flour
1 c. buttermilk
3/4 C. boiling water

 Beat eggs, sugar and oil for 2 min.. Add in all dry ingredients and buttermilk. Mix. Add the boiling water and mix well. Bake 350 for 30-35 min.

Once cool, mix the filling in separate bowl and spread in between the layers:

1/2 can sweetened condensed milk.
7oz coconut.

For frosting, mix in separate bowl and spread over the layers:
1 stick butter
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
splashes of milk or heavy cream to get the perfect consistency.


Kids loved it!

This girl...

The spunk, the fun, the spontaneity, the love, the humor, the carefree nature, the up for any adventure, the never worry about a thing, the free spirited, the live in the moment, so full of life... sometimes I want to be more like her.

The Secret Garden

The good part of a pokey baby (going into day 13 overdue...but who is counting?!) and needing to rest is we've had a trifecta of Frances Hodgson Burnett reading this month.

We've finished Little Lord Fauntleroy, The Secret Garden and we'll finish A Little Princess tomorrow. While the kids loved all three, the Secret Garden is definitely their favorite. In fact, Adrian said that on his scale of favorites that it comes right after "Where the Red Fern Grows" (which is his ultimate favorite).

I also love the Secret Garden...especially given that we've been blessed with our own Secret Gardens here on this 1880s Maine farm. It's such a dream come true! When I saw a bucket and a granite bench through this dense and thick brush, I (and I alone) removed 7 truckloads of brush to find many perennials and the outskirts of an old goldfish pond. I have scars on my arms, but have located and brought back to life some concord grapes that are decades upon decades old. Plus there's another area the goats have helped pull back the nasty brush to see more things planted. Plus another that has so many irises and phlox interspersed with thick wild raspberries. It's truly a treasure having our own secret gardens here, although to bring all these gardens back, it will take a lifetime. We've only been here 4 years so far, all of those years with little ones (when we first bought, two kids under the age of two)...and I'm the lone gardener...but progress has been made.

I am eager to get out there, but I know this year will not be the year for big changes. Lots of our 'work' still looks like a work in progress out there. But, through the brush and brambles, I do find enough flowers to keep our table topped with beautiful homegrown flowers from April until October.