2010 ~ It's been an odd year.....

2010 ~ Has been an odd year for the Wettergrens.

This year we have found ourselves unemployed. Yep, both of us. I remember my mouth uttering the words, "We shouldn't put all our eggs in one basket." Well I was right. But that is of little difference now, since I wouldn't take back the experience I had working side by side with my husband. I truly enjoyed it and as the freezing temperatures bring what I hope is a very busy season to those still lugging air movers around....I am jealous. I loved plunging my sneakers into ice soaked carpeting, lugging in equipment, learning the vortex process and being helpful. Most of all I enjoyed working with Matthew.

We have been filled with sorrow over the loss of loved ones (some to heaven and some just lost from our lives). Matt lost his father this year and it was painful. There are no words that can describe the hurt in your heart when someone so wonderful leaves your life. Frank was wonderful and many of his wonderful qualities live on in his son. The changes in our lives this year have brought a different kind of loss. We have lost co-workers, friends and family due to circumstance. This loss is different, but still we grieved.

We are pregnant! Well Matt isn't but he is certainly playing a large roll in the pregnancy, so he deserves some credit. It took us 10 months to conceive this little baby, most of them in secret since we wanted it to be a surprise. On Memorial Day over pancakes and fried potatoes we finally saw two lines....two blue lines! It was amazing from day 1. Matt is more then wonderful when it comes to caring for me and our unborn baby. With each passing day my love for this man grows. At this very moment he is sleeping on the couch, so I may find an ounce of comfort in the bed. My love grows. Last night when my feet were throbbing in pain, he came to me and rubbed them with tender hands so that I might relax enough to fall asleep. My love grows. He gets me water when I don't ask, fetches my blanket without my knowledge and pulls my big bellied body out of the tub when I am too tired to rise. My love grows. He tucks me into bed every single night. My love grows. He endures my endless foul gas, my infrequent moods and my lack luster cooking. My love grows. As I incubate the baby, he deserves a big shot out to the world! Thank you my dear husband...you have made this pregnancy a pure joy. And praise God for making this pregnancy easy breezy and for blessing me with my perfect companion. It makes it easy for me to be a help-meet.

We have learned a thing or two about money. One. Despite popular belief it does not grow on trees, it is not easy to come buy and when made of plastic it really isn't money at all. Two. You don't need what they have and if you want it you best have a coupon for it. I can not tell you how much money we have saved this year with coupons. If you are not clipping, you are a fool or a millionare. I now treat those tiny colorful pieces of paper as currency. You must have extreme diligence if you plan to save loads of money(and I do). It takes hours to compare prices, sales and coupons between stores; but in the end the money saved is well worth the trouble. Three. Earn money any way you can. This year we have sold so much stuff on eBay I am surprised to see we still have stuff left. We have collected milkweed on the sides of roads, fields and ditches. This milkweed we sold by the pound and we collected hundreds of pounds! Nothing like seeing a pregnant women in the ditch with a bag around her neck picking milkweed...the looks I got while collecting these little money pods ~ priceless! Do odd jobs. We did. Use your skills. We did. Because of this we have survived. We are blessed! Until Matt finds new employment (hopefully close to home, but that is looking less and less likely) or his business gets work (lot's of it ~ pray) we must do what we have to do.

Looking forward.....

In the first part of 2011 things are about to get really strange. Our baby will be born, in our home. We are nervous and excited.

In 2011 we look forward to Matt's business getting off the ground, so he does not have to go downstate for work. If he does, we will be fine...it will just suck a little. Ok, it will suck alot.

My bakery will be back up and running in the spring. I am now on maternity leave from baking since it hurts my back and I am about to give birth. This will be my job and I am looking forward to it.

I will start a book that has been asking to be written for sometime.

We will explore the vision we have of a shop (it's kind of a big deal and a big secret).

We will cling to love, not money.

We will play with our dogs and soon our new baby.

And we will do silly things that make life worth living.......

Let's pray 2011 isn't so odd....

Unraveling Belly Button....

As a child I was quite certain that the doctor in charge of tying up my belly button may have failed in someway and that sucker was due to unravel at any moment. It's a secret fear that my belly button would unravel and I would just spill out. Kind of like when you think you tied the water balloon and as soon as you release it, your covered in water.

When I was little, I would peer into my belly button; yes into (I have an extreme inny with a slight protrusion...a nubbin if you will). I hated the way it looked all smooth and then that weird bubble and so deep in I had to stretch my belly to get a good look at it.

As I get further into my pregnancy, my childhood fascination with my belly button has surfaced. I peer, I touch it and ask other people to touch it. It is moving closer and closer to the rim of my belly and today it changed to a dingy brown color. It looks like a M&M fell in and I didn't clean it out good enough. Hmmm, I hope that isn't what happened. Either way the dark colored circle is rising to the surface...and I am hoping it doesn't unravel!

Some ideas take time....

An idea that started in March has now extended through the summer and now into fall!

I have a good excuse.....

Months pass quickly while you are in a coma. My husband and I are expecting our first child and my first trimester landed me in a pit of fog. I slept and I slept and when I wasn't sleeping I was wadding around in a thick fog the bogged me down and sucked the life right out of me.

No exaggeration it was that bad.

While I was busy sleeping, I was also very busy building a human being inside my body...so there is my excuse.

The fog it has lifted! But it has left me with a certain amount of dumbness that really makes things fun. I find things like parmesan cheese in the silverware drawer and milk in the cupboard; but I am glad to find those things. Somethings, I can not find at all like my brown stretchy pants.

The bigger my belly gets the better things seem to be, so I have gotten off the comfy couch and and planted my feet on the cold tile floor of my kitchen. I've been turning out practice goods and cooking up ideas! I am ready once again to make my debut.....Ada Marie's will live on!

a sign of spring.

Signs of spring; robins chirping in the back yard, tulips slowly rising under a blanket of oak leaves, mushy, melting dog poo and worn plaid patch work pants.

My patchworks are the most likely item to land me on TLC hit show, "What not to Wear". They are a sure sign that the seasons are changing. They are a gift from my dear sister who had them commissioned for me at least 6 years ago. From the moment my paws ran across the recycled patchwork I new they would be my favorite pants for months to come. Years later, they are still my favorite pants. They go with nothing, clash horrible with make up, graphic t's and require special foot wear; truly they aren't even that comfortable.

As you can imagine I have grown considerably over the past six years...the pants still fit, but they don't fit as well...but who cares.

I've had to re patch, resow and re knot areas....but who cares.

The bottoms are ripped, torn and faded....but they still cover my feet...so who cares.

I keep these pants, not for their comfort or style. I keep them because they remind me of some of the happiest times in my life.

My patchworks have jumped on trampolines with children, ran through mud at Renaissance Festivals, they have taken drunken walks and had drunken talks and have even been to the fair. They have walked many a dog, they have dried many tears. My patchworks have danced around fires, ran across bridges and skated down the sidewalk. They have laid in the hot summer sun, they've covered a bikini clad bum; my patchworks may be a little beat up and worn out....but they remind me of some really great times and they sure make me smile!

Bringing it back to bagels....Ada Marie's is all about happier times. When things were a bit more simple and people had a bit more time. We are sure to bring a smile to your face....Look for a Bagel Delivery Flier Soon!!

A tale of two

Ada pictured with her bounty of cookies (thanks Aunt Janet) Marie all dolled up on her pony!

Ada.

Ada was a women of strength, I sensed that even when I was young. She had worken hands, her brown skin wrinkled over large knuckles told me she was no stranger to the labor of love. Her labor; cooking. I don't remember too much about Ada, other then her cooking and sweet smile. Grandma Ada's home was one that contained a pet rock (this fascinated me), rhubarb (my most favorite treat) and the scent of garlic/dill/dough.

Two things I long to taste one last time:

Grandma Ada's Peanut Brittle....it was insanely good. Nothing I have tasted since could even come close to the "brittle" flavor. Her Brittle was light and rich with flavor. It had a gloss on it so clear you could almost see your reflection. It was a delight; it was also buttery !

Grandma Ada's Dill Pickles....I don't know what she put in these suckers and I don't care! THEY were awesome. They were tangy and garlicky; they were the best!

I'm ashamed....I long ago had lost the memory of Ada.

Marie

Oh boy, Marie was such a little stinker! She was strong in a delicate way. Her strength lay in her seduction and comedic behavior. She was forever making me laugh. Grandma Marie was my very best friend for many years. She made smoking look sexy and she wore blond better then Marilyn any day of the week!

Grandma Marie had the gift of creation. She could take a pile of crap, spray paint it, hot glue it and attach it more crap and it would be awesome!! I can either thank her or blame her for my fascination with spray paint and bottled liquor.

Grandma Marie was beautiful and she knew it. I used to think she was so glamorous with that Pall Mall hanging out of her mouth and her beer in a glass. All the women I knew drank their beer out of the can, but not Grandma Marie.

Grandma Marie was special. The memory of her most often dampens my eyes.

Two strong women....Ada & Marie

And so.....a name is born!

Ada Marie's Bagels. I thank them, for now I have a name.

Well the endless name search continues...

I am terrible at making decisions that are cemented. I am the worst at making a concrete, that's the end all be all decision. It's horrible!

Part of the problem is that I worry way to much about how it will affect other people, the opinion that they will form simply based on the decision I have chosen. I understand that no matter what choice I make someone is not going to like it....I have to like it, but not everyone else does. Even though I can comprehend that, I still can not make a decision and that really stinks.

I need a deadline.

Here is the deadline: Friday (this one) by 8 a.m. PERIOD!

It's All In the Name.

You may have the best tasting bagel in town, it may have the perfect crust and just the right chewiness. The blend of seasonings could be considered nothing less than perfection. But the name you chose for your shop is Bagel Dump. Who is going to stop in and buy your delicious creations. My guess, a couple of people maybe...







What's a bagel girl to do. I've got a pretty decent no less then perfect bagel. It's seasonings are getting closer and closer everyday to the exact flavor I am aiming for. They have a nice bronzed crust and a chewy center, but I do not have a name.







I've got some suggestions....







Old Bags Bagels...this one is off the table.







Brown Bag Bagels...this one exists in other states.







Ms. Bagel...Kinda like it.







Bagels for Days...I like this, some don't.







So you see I have a dilemma. I have a bagel and this bagel has no shop, no name for the shop and just a smig of a plan.







However, the dilemma is part of the fun. The puzzle you get to figure out along the way. Today, I figured out a piece of puzzle that has been bugging me since the very beginning of my bagel experiment.







The color. I know that may seem silly, but I really wanted a nice deep bronze to my bagel. A consistent coloring that was also glossy. I have made set after set of bagels each time tweaking things just a bit to get it just right. Batch number 3 of the day has all the characteristics I was grasping for!







Behold the Perfect Bagel!

Bageling

Bageling: A term used to describe why my kitchen is covered in a fine mist of flour.

It's no secret that I love to bake. As a child I can remember perching on my Aunties counter top watching her pour white fluffy flour into huge glass bowls, gently she would hollow out the center with her knuckles. Next she would crack two large brown eggs into the hollow, they would plop and jiggle slightly before coming to rest.

There is something so comforting about turning dough onto a lightly flowered surface and kneading it into a shiny soft ball. Waiting patiently while it rises and so you can punch it down and shape it into a nice loaf or cut it into strips and braid it; it can be patted flat, coated with olive oil and topped with oregano, garlic and Parmesan cheese. Oh and then when it bakes....the most amazing aroma fills the home! I really enjoy the peacefulness of bread making.

However, there is a new carb is in town! I introduce to you the bagel. Not the bagel you can get sitting next to the eggs at the grocery and not a bagel that is light and fluffy and is really just a roll with a hole. I'm talking about a real bagel.

A chewy delicious bagel, with a brown crunchy crust. This type of bagel is hand rolled, yeast risen, boiled and then baked; this bagel is a meal.

So lately I spend my free time bageling. I knead dough and dance; I knead dough and pray; I knead dough and sing silly songs.

I need dough.....