Worst parents ever.

Saturday, April 30, 2011

Just kidding. I know we're not. But at times today, it felt like Nora was judging us. :)

We flew to Las Vegas with our little one in tow. First off, Nora was diagnosed with an ear infection yesterday. I guess the MONTH of constant sickness/congestion finally caught up with her. So, we had to take her on a plane with only two doses of antibiotics, and probably a painful ear. However, she handled it like a ROCKSTAR. She did not cry once in the 6ish hours total we were in the air. In fact, she was in rare form, charming the socks off of complete strangers by flashing them the biggest smiles ever. Normally, she's very serious around unfamiliar people, simply staring at them--not today. Today, she was out to prove to all of them that a baby on a plane does not automatically equal disaster!


Wouldn't YOU want to sit next to me?

We landed in Vegas around 6:00 p.m. local time, which is 9:00 p.m. back home--meaning that we were already two hours past Nora's normal bedtime. Although she had a great, two-hour morning nap at home before we left for the airport, she only slept for about an hour on the plane, so believe me, she was tired. Still, you wouldn't have known it from her mood.

Before we even left the airport, we had to take Nora over to the slot machines for pictures. Sin City, baby!

After claiming our baggage (ugh), and picking up our rental car (double ugh), we headed to our hotel. We bid through Priceline and booked a hotel near the airport--South Point Hotel & Casino. By the time we arrived and parked, it was about three hours past Nora's bedtime, and she was looking a little rough:

This pic makes me laugh. Still, she was happy to do some people watching in the casino as we got checked into the hotel. Once we were FINALLY in our room, it was straight to bed for Nora. By the time she went down, it was a whopping FOUR HOURS past her bedtime and she had not slept at all. Crazy.

So, needless to say, we are not party animals in Vegas tonight! We were starving, so I picked up some takeout for us at Steak 'n' Shake downstairs. HA!

It's too bad Tessa couldn't be here with us. We saw someone in the airport walking their chihuahua through the terminal and it made us miss our other girl! But, as always, she is enjoying her time with our dog/house sitters, a.k.a. my brother and sister-in-law. (Thanks, guys!)

Now, it's time to go to bed, since it's very likely that Nora might try to wake us up at 4:00 a.m. tomorrow. Hooray, jet lag!

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A Royal Pain in the Ass

Thursday, April 28, 2011

I don't even know why I watch the morning news, really. On any given day, I could name at least one thing that pisses me off about the coverage, or lack thereof.

It just so happens that for the last two months (or has it been four?), the most aggravating thing of all has been the "Countdown to the Royal Wedding." I'm sorry, but before I head off to work in the morning, I do not need to know that there are 67 days remaining until Will and Kate tie the knot.

This frustration has only increased with time.

So, you can imagine that when I turned on my TV to find that the Today Show--not only Meredith Vieira, but THE ENTIRE TODAY SHOW TEAM (minus Al Roker. I guess he's not worthy)--was in London this morning, my head almost exploded.

I get the appeal of watching the wedding. I understand the fascination, and the excitement. (Though I'll admit that, in the day and age of DVR and YouTube, I don't quite get the wake-up-at-3-a.m.-for-coverage thing, but I digress.) But I do not support the complete and utter TAKEOVER of an entire news broadcast for weeks and weeks. How many times have we heard about the mystery of Kate's dress? Do I need to see video of delivery trucks pulling up and unloading 20-foot trees for decoration inside Westminster Abbey? And I'll tell you right now, I do not give a rat's ass about the hotel room decor where Kate Middleton will spend her last night as a commoner.

In the 25 minutes I had it on, there were two minutes worth of actual news.

I can't tell you which states have been most impacted by the deadly storms in the South, but I can tell you that Kate and Harry attended a second wedding rehearsal, but Will didn't show because he felt confident after the first one.

STOP THE MADNESS.

Alas, the wedding is tomorrow. It's finally here. I suspect (hope! pleasepleaseplease) that come Monday, we might be able to return to some semblance of normalcy. Yes?

In the meantime, Nora is brushing up on her British accent and enjoying a spot of tea and crumpets. She's pumped.

Apparently she didn't get my memo. I better not catch her awake at 3 a.m.!

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We might be crazy.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

As our Western roadtrip vacation approaches, I have become a bit overwhelmed by it. It's our first week-long vacation with a baby. It's our first time taking a baby on such long flights. AND, this just so happens to be the most complicated, tiring itinerary we have ever planned for ourselves. (Did I mention WITH A BABY?)

We might be crazy.

I have high hopes that Nora will come through and be the flexible, easy-going, perfect kid that she is, but I have fears that all hell will break loose AND OH MY GOSH THERE IS A THREE HOUR TIME DIFFERENCE WHAT WERE WE THINKING GAH. Going to bed at 4 p.m. and getting up at 4 a.m. should be F-U-N.

I just keep telling myself that people have done crazier things. I know there are couples out there who take their kids anywhere and everywhere. Around the world, even. So if they can do that, we can handle a simple 3-hour timezone change, right? RIIIIGHT?

Survival tips are much appreciated. Please and thank you.

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One Choice

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Do you ever sit back and reflect on the course of your life, and think about how if you had made just one choice differently, it would have altered your path?

For me, it's not something I ponder on a daily basis, but there are times when something will trigger thoughts like this. Recently, I've been watching "Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes," a documentary-style program that chronicles the planning, work, and drama that goes into the filming of each episode of Oprah. I'm fascinated by this show, simply because there was a point (during my college years) when I planned to go into television production. I wanted to be a producer.

During the summer after my freshman year, I visited my friend on the set of General Hospital in Los Angeles, and worked at some fan events with her while I was there. I had an interest, but after that, I had the bug. I thought I wanted to live in New York or L.A., work with celebrities, and live this semi-glamorous life.

But then, my sophomore year, the more classes I took, the more I realized how tedious something like TV production can be (imagine having to film the same scene over and over and over). At one point, I got a taste of dealing with celebrities and I was not impressed. I know there are some really great ones out there, but I don't deal well with egos, and well... a lot of celebrities have egos. And then I realized how I really didn't want to feel limited to living in New York or L.A.

So, I turned my back on TV production and switched my major to public relations. Since then, my work experience has led me to being on the set of commercial shoots, and although they are fun to do every once in a while, I know I made the right decision regarding my day-to-day life.

But when I watch "Season 25," I sometimes find myself thinking, Wow, what if I hadn't changed my mind? Where would I be now?

And then I realize that all I've really ever wanted in life was a family, with a job that I can enjoy and/or tolerate for 40ish hours per week that will pay the bills and help us live a certain lifestyle. I work hard, and I have goals to move up the ladder, but I don't need to bust my ass and sacrifice my personal life for the sake of a career. And I don't know that I would have all of this if I had chosen to stay in TV production.

All because I made that one choice. I'm so glad I did.

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She loves him. She REALLY loves him.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Nora loves little kids. She stares at them, smiles at them, "talks" to them. I know it's not rare for babies to do this, but OH.MY.GOSH it is just so stinkin' cute to see your kid light up in the presence of other kids. Especially when the other kid is her cousin.


I cannot wait to see these two clowns grow up together.

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Happy Easter

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Our Easter weekend was as good as can be expected...

...When you only have power in half of your house.

...When the electric company has to make an emergency trip out to your house at midnight on a Friday night. You know, 12 hours before you have a scheduled appointment to show your house to potential buyers. And when you can't find the problem and an electrician needs to spend hours upon hours troubleshooting on Saturday and Easter Sunday.

...And when that troubleshooting eventually involves removing kitchen cabinets and sawing a hole in the wall? Even better.

Yep. It's been thrilling. But I digress.

Luckily, we have a little ray of sunshine in our lives who makes everything seem better. And it was her first Easter, so we made the best of it, and still managed to celebrate with our families.


I cannot get over her in this dress. I didn't even want to take it off of her at the end of the day. Too stinkin' cute.

Happy Easter!

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Oreo Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Saturday, April 23, 2011

The name says it all, don't you think?

But pictures still help...


...it's a chocolate chip cookie with an Oreo inside. Hello, gorgeous.

My cousin posted a link to these on her Facebook page a few months ago and I bookmarked them right away. Because I love Oreos. And I love chocolate chip cookies. For me, it was impossible for these to go wrong.

They are pretty simple to make, too. Mix up a basic chocolate chip cookie recipe, then smoosh the dough around the Oreo. Not too time-consuming. Check out Picky Palate for the recipe and nice step-by-step photos.

The verdict? These are super fun to eat. They are gigantic. See?

But I do have to admit that the taste of the Oreo gets overshadowed a bit. If I didn't know it was in the middle, I might not be able to guess. If you're looking for something fun and kind of impressive looking, though--these are your answer.

Also, if you want to try out some of the variations on the original (like a Nutter-Butter stuffed chocolate cookie), check out Serious Eats.

Go ahead and stuff yourself with cookie-stuffed cookies. I dare ya.

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House Woes

Thursday, April 21, 2011

I am a little overwhelmed by life these days. This week in particular has been a busy one, so it's been difficult to find time to blog. I have these ideas, and think I need to blog about this or that, and then I just don't have the opportunity to actually sit and write. Last night, I was working (at home, thankfully) until 10:30 p.m., and that was after having to get up early yesterday to be at an off-site meeting right at 8:00 a.m.

I'm trying to remember that everything in my life is a blessing--my "problems" are so minor compared to those of others. And I sure am thankful to have our little Nora to come home to at the end of the day. She has learned to blow REAL raspberries now (with tongue between the lips, spit, and everything) and debuted that new talent last night. Michael and I were in hysterics. She did it over and over and over again--she knew she was amusing us. What a gift she is.

We are still house hunting, and it is slowly and surely killing me. I swear.

Last week, we had an appointment to see a house, only to discover upon arrival that it was located right next to the freaking Clampetts. I'm pretty sure there was a car parked on the neighbor's lawn, but I can't clearly remember because I've tried to block it out. They had old tires and trash piled up against their house. It looked like a junkyard. That's the last time we'll make an appointment without doing a drive-by first. We were really familiar with the neighborhood, so I thought we didn't have to bother, but that's a lesson learned.

It didn't much matter anyway, because upon walking into the house, we discovered that it was disgusting. Old, dirty, and just gross. The owners are renting the place out, and God bless the people who agreed to move into that place, because it is seriously a shithole placed in the middle of an otherwise nice neighborhood. Everything was done completely half-ass. The bottom line was that this place needed way more updating than the house is worth. The neighbors were just the nail in the coffin of that place. I wish the realtor luck in selling it, because whoa.

Yesterday, we drove by three houses and eliminated them all right away. Two of them were situated in a hilly neighborhood that turned out to be a MOUNTAIN. I cannot imagine trying to drive up or down that street in the wintertime, and forget about family walks or bike rides. We'd surely lose Nora as she went flying down the hill on her tricycle one day. Nuh-uh. The other was a large house with "some updates needed," as the description said. Well, upon arrival, we could see right off the bat that it needed new windows and a roof. And, judging by the photos in the listing, it needs work inside, too. There is just not enough money in the world, my friends.

We are beginning to question our initial approach. We've been determined to stay in our current town, but after four months and little luck, we have started to widen our boundaries. We've actually found a house that we really love (from the outside and the pictures, anyway), but it's in a neighboring county with a bad rap. I think most of that rap is due to snobby city folk being judgey about the "country" folk, but I think there is likely some validity to it, too. Nora would be in a school district that isn't as good as the one we're in now, though our realtor (who also happens to be a teacher) has assured us that it's not as bad as we think. To be fair, Michael and I went to two of the best public schools in the county, and we'd say about 50% of our graduating classes did some serious drug experimentation, so it's not like those schools are perfect, either. [I realize this makes it sound like all of the area schools are terrible. Not the case at all--I'm just saying that high school is high school, and if your kid is going to be a druggy idiot, he's likely to be a druggy idiot anywhere. A kid could just as easily fall in with the wrong crowd at the BEST school than a school that's not quite the best, know what I mean?] The commute to work would rise from 5 minutes to 15 minutes. We're totally spoiled right now, so 15 minutes seems like a long ride, but we know that it's not really, and we're trying to remind ourselves of that fact.

We've considered looking into building, but we'd have to compromise on the area in which we'd like to live. Plus, my argument is that if we're going to go through the process and take the time to build, I'd want it to be our dream house--which I'm pretty convinced we could not afford at this time. Add to that the fact that most developments going up in our price range have lots the size of a shoebox, and I'm thinking that's not the right direction for us right now.

Today, we received a glimmer of hope on one front, at least: We got a call for an appointment on our current place. It's the first time the phone has rung in six weeks (I think? maybe more), so we're excited about that. I just hope that this is a serious buyer, and not the "We're just starting our search" type people. MAKE US AN OFFER, PLEASE.

Of course, should we get an offer and accept it, that puts the pressure on us for our own house hunt, because HELLO WE HAVE NO PLACE TO MOVE TO. But something's gotta give here; something has to happen first. We'd rather be in a position where we have sold our place and don't yet have another than have a place we want to buy and not be able to sell our place.

And so the saga continues...

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Game Three.

Monday, April 18, 2011

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Soooo Big

Sunday, April 17, 2011

We had such a great weekend. It was filled with lots to do, lots of laughs, and lots of time with Nora. It's just too bad it's almost over. :(

The theme of the weekend was undoubtedly, "When did our baby get so big?" I know she's still small in the grand scheme of life, but my gosh, I have no idea what happened to my little newborn.

It started on Saturday morning with her waterbabies class. Now that we're in week three, she's like an old pro in the water. She was moving her arms, splashing a bit, going for the toys... and new this week, we put her face in the water. But to Nora, that was N.B.D. ("No big deal," if you're one of the cool kids.)

That afternoon, we went grocery shopping and Nora sat in the cart--like a big girl--for the very first time. She tried to steal my grocery list from my hand about 4,982 times, but it was adorable. She loved "helping" with the items in the cart. She was particularly in love with a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos.


Today, we took her to Buy Buy Baby to check out convertible car seats. She looked like such a big girl sitting in them (even though the big seats actually made her look pretty small!). Oddly enough, I don't think we're going with the Britax Roundabout, nor the Evenflo Triumph. We actually liked the Britax Marathon 70 the best because of the convenience features and the extra padding/side impact protection.

Another little milestone? Nora will eat pieces of puffs now. I am still paranoid so I break them into quarters (the ones we have are shaped in circles like cheerios), but she eats them. At first, she made hilarious faces (I'm guessing because the texture was different than she's used to?), but she doesn't seem to be bothered by them anymore.

The biggest thing is that we are now comfortable enough in her sitting ability to let her play on the floor all by herself. Tonight, we made dinner while she sat and played happily on the living room floor. TOTALLY SOLO. So again, I must say, WHERE DID MY LITTLE BABY GO? She is well on her way to toddlerhood, people. :(

To top it all off, she sat up in her bathtub tonight. Like big girls do. *sigh*

Although she is growing like a weed and subsequently breaking this mama's heart, she is also bringing us more and more happiness as time goes on. She is just SO.MUCH.FUN. So, as I sit here reflecting on the weekend and thinking about how much she changed in just a few days, I can't help but recognize just what an amazing weekend it was.

I can't wait for the next one.

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Losing stinks.

Saturday, April 16, 2011




Although she was dressed for the game (thanks, Aunt Marie!), I think it's clear that Nora was not impressed by the Sabres' performance.

...Or maybe it was just the John Deere hat.

Sorry, Baby.

Go Sabres!
(I hate hockey. Shhh. Don't tell.)

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F*ckwad

Friday, April 15, 2011

A new favorite word!

Regardless of political leanings, I think we can all agree that Donald Trump is a joke... right?

And I hope we can all agree that the conspiracy theory that claims that President Obama is not an American citizen is ridiculous. Disagree with his politics? Sure. But to believe that his birth records, birth announcements, and life story are all falsified? C'monnnn.

And although Mitt Romney is clearly a viable candidate for 2012, this is funny stuff (even if you're a fan). Ahhh... Election 2012: The fun is just beginning.

Anyway, there's much more that's hilarious about this clip of The Daily Show from earlier this week, but the part during which Jon Stewart calls Donald Trump a f*ckwad is my personal favorite.

Enjoy, and happy Friday!

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Fashionista

Wednesday, April 13, 2011


Mommy's little helper assists in the outfit selection for the day. She's even holding the shirt on the hanger, all by herself.

It won't be long until my opinion counts for nothing. *sigh*

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Seven Months Old

Monday, April 11, 2011

Dear Nora,

Oh, baby girl. You are getting so, so big. You are changing so much every single day.

This month, it’s like you became more of a real person. It’s a difficult thing to put into words, but you do things knowingly. You have wisdom about you. I can see the wheels turning in your head when people talk to you, when you are playing, when you are moving, touching, and tasting. It’s an amazing phase of your development.


Your biggest milestone this month has been sitting up on your own. At first, you could sit if we propped you up just the right way, and we had to be RIGHT THERE in case you moved, because you’d inevitably fall. You’ve since graduated to being able to sit completely on your own, without your hands propping you up. You can make little movements from side to side and reach for things without falling over. But you still have a little ways to go before you’re a pro. If you turn your head to look behind you, you’ll topple over. If you reach for something that is a little too far away, you face-plant. Still, we can put the boppy or a pillow behind you and feel comfortable walking away, knowing that you are capable of sitting there all on your own.

You play now. Like, truly play. You love toys and holding objects. You squeal and ooooh and ahhhh at things that excite you. You “talk” to us. You are fascinated by everyday items like cell phones and remote controls, potato chip bags and cereal boxes. If someone tries to drink something while holding you, your little hands reach up to try to grab at the cup or bottle. You smile at toys that play music and make noise—like Scout. Oh my gosh, you totally love Scout.

You love Daddy and me, but I’m pretty sure Tessa is your favorite thing in the whole world. You stare at her whenever she’s in your sight. You smile and coo at her when she barks, or when she walks by. You giggle when she licks your face. I can’t wait to see how you play with her when you get a little bigger.

Every night, you pretty much beg us to put you to bed. We try to keep you up just a few minutes more, but you get to a point where you literally just whine until we put you in your crib. You see, you soak up every minute of every day—you play hard. You exhaust yourself, little one! As a result, your sleep is still great. You’re going through a phase (at least I assume it’s a phase; you’re always changing up the details) when you wake up early in the morning—sometimes before 6:00 a.m.—and you squeal and chatter with yourself in your crib. Thankfully for all of us, you eventually doze back off until it’s time to get up for the day.
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We’ve continued introducing you to new foods this month, and you’ve eaten most of them without issue. New tastes this month: apples, mango, blueberries, carrots, peas, spinach, green beans, “chicken dinner,” and prunes. You really like avocado now (last month, I wasn’t so sure). The two that were kind of “iffy” this month were spinach and green beans. They were both store-bought (Earth’s Best), and you didn’t seem to be a big fan. You’d eat a few bites but then you’d start making faces, and a couple of times, you actually gagged (sorry, baby). However, all I had to do was mix them with something else you like (peas or sweet potatoes) and you gobbled them up with no problem. Introducing you to new flavors has been really fun for me. I’m still making most of your food myself, but I do buy a couple of jars just to help give you some more variety from week to week.
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You LOVE kids. You smile at them and watch them. Your cousins—Brendan, Logan, and Hunter—are endless sources of entertainment for you. Obviously, you feel the same way about the girls at daycare, too. This month, we discovered you don’t discriminate—you love kids you don’t know too well, either. At Aunt Kara’s bridal shower, you were totally loving your third cousin, Mia, and she was THRILLED that you were smiling and “talking” to her.

Your newest social “trick”? You blow raspberries. Sort of. You purse your lips together and blow air through them, making a funny little sound. You do it all of the time, but it seems that you do it mostly when something excites you. It is just about the cutest thing we have ever seen.

Your feet are still the coolest toys around (and apparently they taste pretty good, too). You still love your baths; you kick and splash and move all around. We started you in a Waterbabies class a couple of weeks ago, and you really like that, too. Daddy and I have a blast playing with you in the water. You love your stackable rings, and you bang all of your rattles against the nearest surface to see what kind of noise they make. You’ll usually play happily in your jumperoo while I get ready in the mornings, but you don’t do much JUMPING yet. You are ticklish. You still love it when we tell you that you have “P.U. STINKY FEET!” You have started a habit of grabbing at your own hair while you nurse.

We took you to the doctor a week ago because you have a really bad cold. You have been acting perfectly (no interrupted sleep, you’ve been eating and playing normally), but your breathing has been gunky and you had a horrible hacking cough. They said you likely have RSV, but it’s been over a week and you are on the mend now. But while there, you were weighed, and you were 13 lbs., 14 oz. I looked it up and that is in about the 5th percentile. Some of your 3-6 clothes are still big on you. I took a few 6-9 month Carter’s outfits out of the closet this weekend and they were ENORMOUS. At this rate, I’m starting to think you’ll still be fitting into 6-9 month outfits on your first birthday, but you could still surprise me.

Lastly, I was wrong with my prediction last month—you still don’t have any teeth! At your six month appointment, your pediatrician said you were “not even close!” So, we wait for that—and honestly, we are not in any hurry.

There is not a day that goes by that Daddy and I don’t marvel at you. You are so much greater than we ever could have imagined, and we love you more than we ever thought we could.

I love you from my head down to my toes.

Mommy

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Converting to Convertible

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Nora is at the age now when I'm starting to wonder when we should ditch the infant carrier car seat and switch to a convertible one.


I've been researching convertible car seats for a while now, and I think we have them narrowed down to two--the Evenflo Triumph Advance, or the Britax Roundabout. They are relatively similar in price, and both are rated very highly in safety, so it's pretty much a toss-up.

For the record, our pediatrician is estimating that Nora will probably be around 17 lbs. at 12 months old, and her infant carrier weight limit is 22 lbs. I'm guessing she'll probably hit that when she's oh, 18+ months old. :) So the size limit is not really a deciding factor for us. (Though it'll be interesting to see when she hits 29 inches, which is the height limit. At six months, she was 25 inches.)

The infant carrier car seats are a godsend during the cold weather months, because it's so convenient to be able to buckle up and bundle up your baby in the warm comfort of your home, before heading out into the blustery, freezing, ass-cold wind and snow. But now that the weather is warmer, that's not as much of an advantage.

The other advantage of the infant carrier is that Nora can go to sleep in it whenever she wants. In the grocery store? Sure, take a little snooze. Fell asleep in the car? Let's carry her inside and let her continue to sleep in it until she wakes up on her own. Honestly, those things are getting less and less common for her, though. Now that she's older and more aware of her surroundings, she's usually awake whenever we're out. And if she falls asleep in the car, she will usually wake up almost as soon as we take her out of the car anyway. But, on the occasion that she does continue napping, that is certainly a "pro" in the infant carrier column.

Now that Nora is bigger, the weather is better, and she is working on becoming an expert at sitting up on her own, we are taking her out of her car seat more and more. For instance, this weekend we were at the mall and instead of taking the entire seat out of the car, I unbuckled her and let her sit upright in her stroller, facing outward toward the world. She loved it. And we're likely to start taking her out during grocery trips, too, so she can sit in the cart and look around. For these same reasons, it seems like a convertible seat might be better suited for our upcoming road trip out West, too. With so many trips in/out of the car, that seems like a "pro" in the convertible seat column.

Welcome to my world of indecision.

More than likely, we'll end up keeping her in her infant seat through at least the end of May/early June (she'll be about 9 months old), but maybe we'll change our minds on a whim.

If you're a parent, what did you do, and why? Or, if you haven't made the switch yet--do you have a plan for when you will?

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Party Girl

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Nora was happy to get all dressed up for Aunt Kara's bridal shower...


...especially since her party outfit was a Christmas gift from Aunt Kara.


Her cuteness hurts my heart! :)

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Butterfly Cupcakes & Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Monday, April 4, 2011

My brother and his fiancee got engaged in November, set the wedding date at the very end of February, and are getting married in May. (My brother will be deployed this summer, and they want to be hitched before he leaves.)

Needless to say, time is flying! I could hardly believe it when I realized that the bridal shower was only a few days away. And I kinda-sorta panicked a little when I still didn't have a plan for the cupcakes that I had promised to make. This is coming from someone who is normally a monster planner. I'm going to go ahead and blame the situation on the whole "working mom" thing.

ANYHOO...

On Friday, I still hadn't decided what kind of cupcakes to make. I wasn't planning on doing anything fancy with the decorating; just a pretty color frosting in a little swirl on top. But then, as I was going through my bookmarked recipes looking for exciting flavors, I came across cupcakes that I had saved a LONG time ago (almost two years ago, actually), just waiting for an excuse to make them. And, well, this was the perfect excuse.

Enter: Butterfly cupcakes.


The other five bridesmaids and I had agreed on not really having a "theme" for the party. We were going more for a "look and feel," which we decided should be sort of "light and springy." When I designed the invitations, I used lime green and aqua colors, so we stuck with them. So imagine my glee when I saw these cupcakes, knowing that I could use those same colors--AND, don't pretty little butterflies just scream "spring" to you?

Given that this was Friday and the shower was on Sunday, and I was just then making the decision to do these, I knew I was a little insane. But I also haven't done a real time-intensive project like this since before Nora was born, so I figured I was due. I ran out and got all of the supplies I needed on Friday night, and made half of the butterfly wings that same night. I made the remainder of the butterfly wings and the antennas on Saturday morning, then baked the cupcakes and made frosting during the day, and decorated on Saturday night. Whew.

I'm sure you're probably wondering how I made them. And, well, Lord knows I didn't have time to take pics during the process. I barely got them done in time, people. Luckily, however, Annie over at Annie's Eats put together an awesome pictorial on how to do them. So head on over there to check it out, if you're so inclined. (And, before you ask, I got the adorable cupcake wrappers--which just so happened to be in the exact colors that I needed; score!--at Michaels.)

The other reason I almost checked myself into an institution is because I chose THIS occasion to deviate from my usual vanilla buttercream. Instead, I chose to make a much-more-labor-intensive swiss meringue buttercream, since I keep seeing so many food bloggers talking about it. And while it came together pretty easily for me, it did take a lot more time.

After all is said and done, I have to admit that I don't really get what all of the fuss is about. But it's good--I guess I was just expecting it to be A-MAZ-ING. If you are put off by traditional buttercream because it's too sweet for you, you'll probably love this--it's sweetness is much more mild. When I tried it straight out of the mixing bowl, my initial reaction was that it tasted like straight butter. And no wonder, considering how much butter goes into the recipe. However, when paired with cake, the flavor of it is actually quite complimentary. I think it's just one of those things that you'll have to try for yourself!

Oh, and I used this recipe for my white cupcakes.

Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream
(Source: Annie's Eats)

Ingredients:

- 5 large egg whites
- 1 cup plus 2 tbsp. sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 lb. (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Combine the egg whites, sugar and salt in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture reaches 160 degrees and the sugar has dissolved.

2. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and the mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes.

3. Reduce the speed to medium and add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, adding more once each addition has been incorporated. If the frosting looks soupy or curdled, continue to beat on medium-high speed until thick and smooth again, about 3-5 minutes more (don’t worry, it will come together!)

4. Stir in the vanilla extract and mix just until incorporated. Tint with gel icing color as desired.

5. Keep buttercream at room temperature if using the same day, or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes.

Yield: about 5 cups

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Sick of Swimming

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Or rather... Sick AND swimming.

That was Nora on Saturday, during her first Waterbabies class.


I think this kid is on a mission to appear sick in as many baby book photos as possible. First trip? Pathetically sick. First swim? Of course she would have to have the tell-tale "sick eyes." Not to mention a nose that was running off of her face. *sigh*

I have to say, though, that aside from looking under the weather, she was (as always) in remarkably good spirits. This kid is a trooper.

Notice the kid crying in the upper part of the frame.
Nora's all, "This is like the biggest bathtub EVER."

Don't those people look like they're talking about my kid? Hmm.

"Pool toys are delicious, Mommy."


We weren't surprised that she loved it, as she is a big fan of her baths. Michael went in with her this week, and I stayed on the pool deck to take pics. Next week, though--Mama's goin' in!

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