Finish It Friday

I've done absolutely nothing with my baby quilt.  This is not going well...

On the plus side, I finished and filed my tax return this week.  At least I did that on time.

Glucose Screening Forfeit

I think that when you take your 1 hour glucose screening test on Thursday and the nurse tells you, "I'll have the results on Monday -- I'll only call you if there is a problem.  No news is good news." if she calls you on Tuesday at 4:45 pm, they should forfeit, and you should get an automatic pass.

Chocolate Mousse Crunch Cake

We had my in-laws over for my husband's birthday dinner last Sunday.  I made this cake from "Our Best Bites" . If you haven't checked out their blog, you really ought too.  I've never made any of their recipes that I didn't love.

This cake is so moist and rich and delicious.  The mousse is so good and so easy to make.  Next time, I think I'll use mint extract instead of vanilla, and use Keebler's Grasshopper Cookies instead of Heath Bar, for a minty variation.  Or use raspberries.  Hmmm...
Speaking of chocolate and raspberries, I've been eating the left over ganache over ice cream and frozen raspberries.  I really need to cut that out, but it tastes so good.

Finish It Friday: Baby Quilt Update

I'm making some progress.  Not as much as I'd like, but it is still progress.

I bought batting and yellow thread.  And I've washed and ironed the fabric, though it looks like it needs to be ironed again.

Something I finished this week?  It only took nine weeks and 3 trips to the the ultrasound clinic, but my little girl finally cooperated enough to be able to finish our 20 week anatomy scan!

More than Thumbs

We met with the hand specialist today, and I learned a few things. And not all of them had to do with tendons and pulleys.

First, I realized that I have an awesome husband, and more importantly, my boys have an awesome father. I mean, I knew I had an awesome husband, but I've been so impressed with him the last couple of weeks. He really is wonderful, but generally, he is a man. I have to schedule appointments, and fill out forms, and pay bills, and pay attention to details. But with Monkey's hand, he as taken the lead. We hadn't been in the door for two seconds last week, after our trip to the pediatrician, and he was calling the hand specialist and setting up Monkey's appointment. When we arrived at the hospital, I took Monkey to the drinking fountain, and expected to find B sitting in the reception area. Instead, I found him checking us in -- he had handed over his ID and insurance cards, and was about to fill out paperwork. When it came time to take Monkey to get X-Rays, B volunteered to assist, even before the nurse said that I couldn't help because I was pregnant. He even paid the co-pay before we left. He really made me smile today. It was a little hard for me, because I am a bit of a control freak, but I know that I can count on him.

Second, I learned that being a little neurotic can pay off. The doctor asked if Monkey hurt his thumb or if we just noticed it. "We just noticed it last week," I told him. And the doctor kinda nodded. "Do you have any idea how long it's been that way?" He asked. I told him, "I can't be sure, but I think it's been that way since at least November." He looked at me a little quizzically -- probably because I had just gotten done telling him that I had only noticed it last week. "Well, I have this picture..." I told him. He said that was unusual evidence, but actually very helpful in discussing treatment options. He said that sometimes trigger thumb can resolve itself, given a couple of months, but if it had been that way for several months, it wouldn't resolve on its own. Surgery really was the best option, and it's not necessary to "wait and see."

Since we are fairly confident of my photographic evidence, and now that Monkey notices that there is something wrong with his thumb, we're going with the surgery. It's scheduled for two weeks from now.

Finish It Friday

I have a flaw, of course it is not my only flaw. But it is one that bothers me a lot.

I like to learn new things. Which is good. So I start projects, lots of projects. Once I figure out what I need to know (or get bored or distracted), I don't finish my project. Which is bad.

Here is a list of some of my unfinished projects:

• Halloween quilt, lap sized. Just needs to be bound
• Flower quilt, twin size. One more row, tied & bound. I 'gave' this to my sister for Christmas about 8 years ago.
• Sampler Quilt -- only have like 5 squares done
• Rag quilt -- the edges need to be cut so that it is 'raggy'
• Rag quilt that still needs to be assembled
• Crocheted throw that I have been working on since high school
• A stack of homemade paper, which are supposed to be cards. Along with these are rolls of window screen and hardware cloth to make screens, and several pieces of felt.
• A roll of cording to make rag baskets.

So as part of my efforts to simplify and decluttter, I've made a deal with myself (and my husband). On the first Friday of each month I'll pick one of my unfinished projects and I'll have until the first Friday of the following month to finish it. If I don't finish it, I have to get rid of it. This will hopefully force me to finish some of my projects or reduce the number of "my" boxes that are in the garage.

In honor of one my current, most important "unfinished" project (the baby girl cooking in my belly), I'll be finishing a quilt. I picked the fabric out to make a quilt for a dear friend's baby girl, who is now 8. I feel a little guilty not picking out the fabric especially for my little girl. But I think subconsciously I didn't finish it because I knew I wanted it for my little girl one day.
I have everything I need -- except the batting and coordinating thread. I'm giving myself until the end of April to get this finished.

This will be a HUGE improvement for me -- the quilts I started for my boys before they were born? I finished them for their 2nd birthday.

(Don't be surprised if "Finish It Friday" becomes a feature of itself, because I'm not that great at finishing things I start -- including blog posts.)

Do you have unfinished projects? Would you like to join me for Finish it Friday?