Hart 2 Heart

Bad week for clowns

It's been a rough week here at the Hart-Jenkins household. After having a fever of 103 for two days, accompanied by a gut wrenching cough, which morphed into the worst cold of all time, the "clown" woke up at 2 in the morning with a horrible skull splitting head ache. He never really gets headaches. Nothing helped, so we ended up at the ER. Poor kid was crazy with pain. The ibuprofin we gave him did nothing. Finally the Dr. gave him morphine and fluids, which still didn't help. So they gave him a little more, which finally took care of it. They did a CAT scan which was clear, and we went home and went back to bed at 5 a.m. 

We all slept for most of the morning, and Emmet woke up feeling better than he had in days. I personally felt exhausted and frustrated. I hate seeing my baby in pain and sick. He catches everything that comes around, and has missed a lot of school this fall. He's in a magnet program for gifted and high achieving students. Missing school is frowned upon, and his teachers are not terribly sympathetic about being out. So his grades are in the toilet, and he's depressed about that. 

The good news is that today, he is so much better. Me too. We slept a lot, and the sun is shining. We have good friends who have our back. Emmet's great friend Henry has dropped off homework and worksheets every day this week, so he can try to keep up at school. 

And in the end . . . you can always make cupcakes. 

Halloween rewind

Halloween was out of control on our block this year. Probably due to falling on Saturday, and the fact the we are overrun with 13 year old boys around here. This holiday was made for them.

 

This is my favorite 13 year old. He's been home sick for 2 days. Maybe it was something he ate.

 

We had some other visitors this year as well. . .

 

Let's just say, they weren't all greeted with open arms. My bad.

 

Neck thingies

I became obsessed the other night with making a sort of crocheted scarf/necklace/accessory sort of thing. I'd seen something similar out of felted wool, and decided I should just whip something up by crochet.

I am definitely a night person, or by my Grandma Wetter's description, a 2nd shifter, as was she. On Sunday I was exhausted after my two day show at Artistic License, so I napped for most of the afternoon. Naturally, I wasn't tired come bed time.

 

So this is what I came up with by two in the morning. Bad photo, but you get the idea. It also works nicely as a belt/sash; better I think. I'm still contemplating the design.

 

Tuesday, I decided I wanted to try something a little finer and more fallish. I got this really interesting yarn that is bamboo and silk--so soft. I actually found it at Joann's. You have to look hard, but there are some interesting yarn choices there.

 

By the way, how did Friday get here so fast? Gotta get out and buy some more candy. I think this Halloween is going to be a doozie!

Rewind. . .

So, I wanted to share some more of our trip to New York, but a few other things (work!) got in the way. 

 

I dragged Andy to Soho to visit Purl Patchwork, and the original Purl. I've been following Purl since reading about it in Martha Stewart years ago. The blog is wonderful and inspiring too, just like the stores! 

 

I bought this fun bag of fabric remnants. This one is my favorite. . .

 

I was amazed at how small both shops were. They were perfectly organized and gorgeous, with the most thoughtfully selected merchandise. They actually hold classes right in the middle of the store.

 

Next we were off the the original Purl, for yarn!

 

 

And yarn we found!

 

I bought these three organic cotton beauties. Not sure what they will become.

 

They are pretty, no? 

Time to get back to sewing, and Halloweening. I love Halloween, but this year, sadly, there is no time for a party, so I'm focusing on outdoor decorating. Our neighborhood goes nuts--lots of kids. Oh, and I have a sale tomorrow in Palos Verdes to benefit the Assistance League of San Pedro. If you're in the area, come on by!

Christmas in October

1st Annual Holiday Boutique

Thursday, October 29, 2009

2 pm - 7 pm

Sea Bluff Clubhouse

32540 Seawolf Dr.

Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275

(between St. Peter By the Sea Church & Terranea Resort

Hart Quote #2

This one is in regards to the first Hart Quote. Here's Hart Quote #2:

 "You're going to have to work on which quotes you use... I'm much funnier than that!" —Kelley Hart

Rebuttal

I will choose to ignore that last quote. My "guest blogger" has a habit of editing my words. Either that, or he has a poor memory. He is half way to 90, as they say. Anywho. . .

My computer has been giving me fits lately, and it wouldn't download my photos. It's working now, so here are pics of those cookies I was working on last week.

 

 

 

I'm still recovering from my week of cookie making, and 2 shows. The Artistic License fair was lovely as usual, with a little drama added in for me. I'll tell you about that next time.

Thanks for tuning in and remember, don't believe everything you read!

So I've been a little busy this week. And Andy decided to "help out" and do a little post. Let me just say, that I've been misquoted. What I said was actually much more amusing, though I can't exactly remember what it was. And, what's up with the comments? No one ever comments when I post! Mr. Jenkins shows up, and bam! And another thing. . . no caption, or explanation of the photo. One of the only new shows I am enjoying on t.v. this fall is Glee. It is awesomely hilarious. And yes, I find the teacher character (played by Matthew Morrison, pictured in the previous post) to be a little hot. Anywho. . . check it out.

So where have I been? In the kitchen, making cookies. Today I completed my biggest cookie order EVER. 110 heart shaped cookies for a wedding. They will be left in the hotel rooms of all the guests as a welcome gift.

 

But then there was Algebra. Emmet is in honors Algebra this year. It really makes my brain hurt, especially when I flash back to my dad trying to help me with my algebra in 8th grade. 

 

So between interruptions for tutoring, and carpooling, I got the cookies done.

It's past midnight and I'm supposed to be asleep so I can get up at 5 a.m. to drive to Costa Mesa for the Artistic License Craft Fair. My computer is working really slow, and I'm not sure I can get the finished cookie photos to load. . .

Hart Quote

I'm around this woman a lot. She's my wife. 23 years. She says some crazy things and I'll be posting them here on occasion. Here's Hart Quote #1:

 "Good looking guys who are a little gay... SEXY." —Kelley Hart

 

New York - part 2

Back to the beginning. . . where we stayed. I've been to New York half a dozen times, the first with Andy on our honeymoon 23 years ago. This time Andy found a very hip hotel on the lower east side. The best aspect of the Hotel on Rivington, was the bed. Yes! The bed had one of those Tempurpedic mattresses. I had heard they were great, but I had no idea the bliss that sleep could be. Of course we spent a little too much time in that bed, but we were on vacation after all.

 

The lobby and restaurant decor was a sort of modern victorian gothic, with stunning chandeliers. I thought this one might look good in my bathroom. We did actually leave the hotel on occasion. 

 

This candy store was on view from our room. At lunch time there was a huge line of middle schoolers out the door. I had to check it out.

 

Economy candy was stocked wall to wall, floor to ceiling with every variety of candy you can imagine or remember from your grandfather's childhood and beyond; and where ever there wasn't candy, there were people packed in. I came home with a giant Homer Simpson Pez dispenser. For Emmet. Of course.

 

Dining is really my favorite thing to do on a trip. Well, at home too. Anyway, This was a great diner. My favorite food is that which someone else prepares. I like good food, but it can be cheap diner fare, or fabulous sushi.

 

We spent a great evening at Sachiko's. It was a long evening, because their computer system died, so every thing was in slow motion. The servers were incredibly gracious and friendly, and we were in no hurry. Among other things, we ordered their special "jewelry box" seen above. Very delicious. 

Tomorrow I'll tell you about the other sights we saw. Besides food. Lots more good stuff to come. Thanks for stopping by.

I'm back!

After a grueling 6.5 hour plane flight last night, we're home from our whirlwind trip to New York city. It was an inspiring and excellent trip.

 "Where the Wild Things Are" seemed to be taking over New York. We happened upon a gallery in Soho that was showing the largest ever exhibit of Maurice Sendak original drawings and paintings. They were just beautiful.

After walking all over Manhattan (in my new boots), we went to MoMA for In Cahoots: Maurice Sendak and Spike Jonze .  The documentary, "Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak" by Spike and Lance Bangs was premiered, followed by a conversation between exhibition curator Joshua Siegel, Maurice Sendak and Spike. It was one of those rare evenings that I will remember forever. 

Though I've adored Sendak's work for my whole life (he wrote "Where the Wild Things Are" the year of my birth), I really never knew much about him. The documentary is intriguing and sweet. The relationship Spike has formed with Maurice is so special, and really comes through in the film. Even more memorable was the question and answer session afterwards. It was really evident how grateful Maurice is to Spike for coming into his life, and making their collaboration so meaningful. Most of the packed audience was in tears.  If you get HBO, check the film out on Wednesday, October 14th. 

After the show at MoMA we got to attend the after party/reception at a private residence in the upper west side. The place was amazing, with lots of incredible original artwork everywhere. Like this Rothko in the living room. . .

In case you're wondering, Andy and I have known Spike since he was 17. In fact, Andy hired Spike right out of high school to work on the BMX magazine where he was the editor. It's been pretty awesome to see his career progress over the past three decades. It's also cool to hang with Spike in New York!

 

We wandered around the city, and ended up in Central park, where we chilled on a lovely fall day, and played frisbee with Catherine Keener. O.K. so now I'm dropping names. But I LOVE her! And she's so nice and funny!

 

 

There's lots more to tell, but I'll leave that for my next post.