Tea Towel Art by Richard Bawden

Lately, my brain feels like molasses. I love my little guy's coos and crowings, but I love them just a little bit less at 5:00 am. And coffee seems to bother his tummy (I'm still nursing), so I can't gulp down more than one cup a day. My point is that I'm trying to update this blog more often, but it's still quite hard to compose coherent thoughts these days! Thanks for bearing with me.

I did manage to snap a pic of these lovely tea towels I bought on our honeymoon in London the other day. They feature artwork by Richard Bawden, known mostly for his art prints. I couldn't decide between the smiling otter & his newly-caught fish and the pair of owls framed with oak leaves, so I purchased both. Not a bad dilemma to have, right? I can't remember which shop behind the British Museum featured them, but maybe it will come to me one of these days. Or probably not (much more likely). At any rate, they've held up amazingly well through messes and many wash cycles so I'm really pleased with the quality.

You can browse through more of Richard Bawden's wonderful, colorful illustrations here.

An Update, Of Sorts

Needless to say, it's been a busy few months around here! The little guy is constantly moving (and eating!). 

I haven't really done much in the way of crafting, although I did have a long string of started-then-unraveled knitting projects. Trying to correctly follow patterns while insanely sleep-deprived and barely coherent is not a good idea. I think I tried one pattern at least three times before I gave up amid tears of frustration. Okay, they were more like tears of not remembering what sleeping is like, but the emotions all kind of blend together in the early months.

Mostly, lately, I've been baking here and there in an attempt to make the best of late spring's first fruits. I'll admit that I can never get enough rhubarb! All winter long I dream of its appearance at the market, a bright ruby and chartreuse contrast to the snowy landscape's whites and grays.

This year, I've vowed to make as many different things with the scarlet stalks as possible instead of sticking to my trademark (although still delicious) stewed rhubarb spooned over Greek yogurt.

So far, I've made these Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp Bars from Smitten Kitchen, this Rhubarb Syrup for Italian sodas without the mint from OrganicGardening, and this Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake from Martha Stewart. They all came out well, but the syrup and upside-down cake were my favorites. The latter, which is more like a coffee cake than a traditional cake, is so moist (gross word, but accurate description) with an almost creamy texture from the sour cream. It was even better on the second day, a rarity for baked goods.

Are you a rhubarb fiend as well? What have you been baking lately?