where have i been, you ask? well...

pumpkin pie, in progress

it's been a busy couple of weeks! the week before thanksgiving, i was busy as a bee making things. things like this pumpkin pie. things like this would take me FAR less time if i could resist martha-stewart-ing them up like i do. i have these teeny cookie cutters, and i LOVE using them for pie crusts like this one. i was so into making this that i got the hippie to take some pictures of the process. he, being red-blooded and male and all that, took advantage of my request and took a few extra pictures pointed down my shirt at my cleavage (such as it is). i will NOT be posting those on the internet. anyway, since last i posted, i have gone through quite a few pumpkin and apple pies. still need to get on the perfecting of my pecan pie skilz.

wire things for the porch

i also made a boatload of wire things, packed them up, and shipped them off to my friend jenn for the opening of her new gallery/shop, the porch. she was planning this artists' reception, but there were just too many conflict to pull that off. i think she'll probably do it in the spring, which is OK by me--it's a better time to make a trip down to cape hatteras anyway. here's hoping she sells a boatload of stuff for christmas!

wendy

we went home to my parents' house for thanksgiving, as we do every year. t-day is the major holiday for my family--i could skip christmas with them WAY easier than i could thanksgiving. i made all my requisite dishes, and got in some good hanging out time with my mom and the rest of my crazy family. one of the highlights of the day was getting to hold the two week old puppies that my brother's girlfriend brought over. SO CUTE!!! the puppies were so glossy and black they were hard to get good pictures of, but i tried anyway. and i took a picture of their mama, too. and i LOVE this picture of my youngest niece, wendy. she's almost five, and as smug and obnoxious as she could possibly be. this is the only picture i have ever seen of her that actually captures that, and it makes me laugh every time i see it.

we also caught the new harry potter movie--we went to see it at the IMAX theater, which was cool, but in my opinion, not quite worth the extra 4 bucks. the movie was pretty great, although i still do not understand why they don't just have these movies in two parts or make them extra long to fit in everything that's important to the story. or at the very least, release extended versions on DVD like LOTR did. it's not like anyone is going to complain about TOO MUCH harry potter! all in all though--it's great, and you should see it if you haven't already. they did a fabulous job on the dragons, and i adore the weasley twins! i liked it well enough to go again last night with my friend emily, to a normal theater this time. which would have been cooler were it not a) the ghetto theater, b)more than a little filthy and smelly, and c) FREEZING. em asked me to knit her a nose cozy during the film, but while i did have some yarn on me, i couldn't see to knit a damned thing. that harry potter--he's pretty dark, man.

and i have also watched the entire first season of desperate housewives. i am filled with depression that i have run out, but thank GOD, because it was eating my whole life!

so yeah--throw in all the other stuff like dance class, regular social stuff, and all the boring yet endless domestic details like laundry and cooking, and i have been running around like mad and have had no time to post anything in AGES. all is well though. the holidays are in full swing. i spent my lunch hour(s) today shopping and actually managed to get something i know for a fact my parents will love. i am knitting presents up a storm, and tomorrow we are going to the farmers' market to get our christmas tree, a ritual i adore! my christmas list is so anal and thorough that store clerks' jaws drop open at the sight of it, and i can't wait for all the mayhem that the next month will bring. oh, and the presents, too! hopefully i will find more time to post in the midst of all that mess.

oh, and by the way, this post is dedicated to flaurella who posted a concerned comment today since i hadn't posted in so damned long. it's awfully nice to be missed by the internet. :)