if only what to sew next was my most pressing problem

Genevieve playing with bias tape in one of the three reversible apron dresses I've made.  © 2012 Amber Schley Iragui

More changes. The nanny has been fired a second time, and my heart is sad. Because I liked her, and Ike will certainly miss her, and she was getting quite good at making blueberry madeleines. But I couldn't rely on her. Our dear old A is going to take up some of her hours for a few months until we decide what to do. It is for the best; really, I don't need so many scrumptious madeleines sitting around the house.

Genevieve needs surgery, after all. And it seems that not only will she need tubes in her ears, but a full adenoidectomy. Her hearing test on Holy Tuesday had just as poor results as the one she took last month. At this point she's had at least six months of hearing loss due to fluid in her ears, perhaps more. The adenoidectomy more than doubles the time under general anesthesia and requires an overnight stay in the hospital. The recovery time is about a week, while if we only had tubes she should recover in a day. I am still debating, as we could just get the tubes. The tubes will drain her ears and help with her hearing and speech—the reason for the surgery in the first place. However, the doctor believes that her adenoids are so enlarged that she is unable to breathe much through her nose. Removing them would make her less susceptible to colds, would cut down on her constantly-runny nose, and help her sleep better. Whatever we decide, the date for the surgery is set for about a month from now.

For one day last week I was convinced we had bedbugs again. Our now-fired nanny said she'd moved out of her apartment because it was infested. I responded as calmly as I could, and when she was gone began manically washing everything. I took whole boxes of hats, gloves, coats and stuffed animals and dumped them in the drier. I pulled the beds apart (all mattresses covered with anti-bedbug encasements) but found no trace of the bugs. And none of us had any bites. No matter, I was suddenly itchy all over. The next day she told me she'd been wrong, her apartment was not infested. Just one apartment in her building had them. Whew.

And then I got a jury summons and an annoying letter from the IRS about a problem with my social security number. 

But the weather is delightfully warm now, and we spent yesterday afternoon in and around Central Park's Conservatory Gardens. We used to go there often when we lived in South Harlem, and I forgot how much I miss that big old park. We packed a Pascal lunch of chocolate, ham, Pont l'Evêque, Italian truffle cheese, pâté, Belgian framboise, and strawberries. Our friends brought French chocolates, brie, pantonne, sliced cucumbers, and homemade pastries. Genevieve helped herself to a good portion of the pâté. It was as much a Paschal feast as one could imagine.

I am posting some photos here of clothes I've made for Genevieve. If only what to sew next was my most pressing problem.

The back of the apron dress. I used a Liberty lawn for this one.  © 2012 Amber Schley Iragui

A 1960s pattern I bought on Etsy, in an Amy Butler voile. Still a little big on her.  © 2012 Amber Schley Iragui

                                                          It buttons up the back, and looks cute with her lemon yellow crocs.  © 2012 Amber Schley Iragui 

And finally, photos I've already posted on Facebook, of the blouse I made her. I think I like it best of all.  © 2012 Amber Schley Iragui