At least it's called a salad...

I went to a baby shower yesterday that had the most delicious salad I have ever eaten.  I know what you're thinking....how is a bunch of lettuce and veggies delicious?  Well this isn't your typical salad.  In fact, this salad doesn't have lettuce or veggies.  It's called a Snickers salad.  It has only three ingredients, and yes...one of them is Snickers!

Snickers Salad

4-6 Granny Smith apples, washed & cored, but not peeled

2-4 Snickers candy bars, chilled

1 tub Cool Whip

Cut apples into small cubes.  Cut Snickers bars into small pieces.  Combine in a bowl and fold in Cool Whip.  Chill for at least 1 hour.

Does it honestly get any simpler than this?  I cannot wait to make this at home.  I think it would be a wonderful Halloween party dessert or really an any-occasion-you-can-think-to-celebrate treat.  I did call it a dessert there but the recipe really does call it a salad.  I can fool myself into thinking its good, right?  It has fruit in it at least!  I mean there are worse things out there!  Ok ok, I know I'm supposed to be finding healthy recipes to try and share on here, but this was just something I had to pass along.  Before yesterday I never even knew a Snickers salad existed, but I can assure you it will not be soon forgotten!

Now I really need to make a trip to the orchard soon.  I'm hoping they have some nice tart apples for this.  I don't know when exactly Granny Smith are in season, but I really can't wait to have this salad again.  Hopefully Gray will get lots of Snickers miniatures while Trick-or-Treating this year, although I imagine this would be good with several other candy bar types as well.  Let the experimenting begin!

Little Corner of Mine: Healthy Baked Donuts

Little Corner of Mine: Healthy Baked Donuts: "here"

Even after I got off the scale this morning and finished cheering for the lower number it displayed, I had a craving for a really good donut. I'm thankful that Long's bakery doesn't have a drive-thru because I would have to go over there every morning and get some fresh donuts. But since it's too much of a hassle to get two kids out of the truck and into a store just to buy a couple of donuts, I don't go. And then I ask this question (not aloud of course, but secretly wanting to scream it): Why do I have to choose between losing weight and eating donuts? Can someone invent a diet where I can eat donuts and lose weight? Now that person would be rich!

So I did what every person does when they have a question they just have to know the answer to right away. I opened up Google. And low and behold, lots of people are trying to reinvent this amazing food into a healthier yet equally yummy treat. I found this recipe and it looks wonderful. I'm already imagining all the different toppings I could try with it, and am definitely wondering how it would fare with whole wheat flour. And I'm really wanting to know where to buy a donut pan! I love to bake, and I didn't even know that such a thing existed! I cannot wait to try this recipe. I'm hoping I can use it as a little reward for many more mornings of lower numbers on the scale.

Just another reason why

*Disclaimer:  The following references a topic that is a highly debatable and sensitive subject for many.  What you are about to read is purely my opinion and is in no way meant to offend anyone!

**Disclaimer:  Longest blog yet..might want to grab a drink and use the bathroom first!

I saw an article last night warning parents about a Similac formula recall.  My immediate reaction was "just another reason why!" It just adds to my growing list of reasons I am so thankful that I am able to breastfeed my children.  I couldn't imagine being a parent and wondering if I had just fed my baby some bad formula.  This recall was prompted due to cans tainted with beetles, but I suppose there could also be cans out there laced with cocaine like that one episode of Law and Order: SVU.  I know that's extreme but when you see how often Law and Order does a show based on true events it really makes you wonder!

The breast vs bottle debate has probably been going on as long as formula itself has been around, but for me it was never even a debate.  There was no question.  I wanted to breastfeed.  And I think at the time I made that decision I didn't even know all the reasons why.  I just knew it's what I wanted to do.  When I was reading that article about the recall I came across a blog post about "reasons why it's so hard to formula feed".  Here's the post for reference.  The entire blog is completely sarcastic and meant to be a funny satire using all the common reasons why women choose not to breastfeed and apply them to formula.  If you read through the comments like I did, you'll find many people took offense and didn't find it funny at all.  That's why I added a disclaimer to this blog (even though the disclaimer on her blog didn't appear to work).  I don't mean to offend anyone by discussing my choices, and I don't want anyone to feel bad about their choices.  But as the author of that blog also replies in the comments, as long as it is your choice that's all that matters.  Well that, and that the choice was an informed one.

Like I said, when I made the decision to breastfeed, I didn't know all the reasons why I should be doing it or why I wanted to do it.  But once I made that decision, I started doing research.  I wanted to be informed.  I bought a book called "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" and started reading.  It is amazing what a little knowledge can do.  Suddenly breastfeeding turns into something I'm not just doing for my baby, it's something I'm doing for myself as well.  For instance, did you know that breastfeeding can reduce your risk of getting breast cancer and some other types of cancer as well?  Oh and breastfeeding women are more likely to return to their pre-pregnancy jeans sooner than formula feeding moms.  They say it's because your body uses those fat stores it creates during pregnancy to create your milk, and also that breastfeeding shortly after your baby's birth signals your uterus to contract and return to it's normal size faster (or something like that, I'm not an expert).  However I think another reason may be that breastfeeding women know that what they eat and drink affects their milk, so they are probably more likely to make wiser choices when it comes to their own meals.

After reading that woman's blog about the reasons it's too hard to formula feed I was happy to see someone put into words some of the things I had been feeling, even if she did so in an entirely sarcastic manner.  When people say that "breastfeeding is too hard", I somewhat agree with them.  Lot's of things in life are hard, but that doesn't mean we should shy away from them.  Breastfeeding is not "too hard".  Like anything new you are learning to do it takes practice.  Did you know how to ride a bike the first time you got on one?  Did you stop riding a bike altogether the first time you fell off and skinned your knee?  Once you get the hang of breastfeeding, and honestly I think it took me about 2-3 weeks with my first child, it's not hard at all.  The skinned knee reference is to compare when some people that say "but it's going to hurt" or "what about when the baby starts teething".  There is some pain while you and your baby are learning how to do it properly, but that's only temporary.  The benefits of breastfeeding last you and your baby a lifetime.  As for teething, have you ever tried to drink a milkshake while biting on the straw?  How'd that work for ya?  When your baby is nursing properly, which he or she should definitely have the hang of by the time teething starts, those little teeth won't be in the way.

"Breastfeeding is so inconvenient."  Another common complaint that I have no understanding of whatsoever.  How is making your hungry baby wait while you fix a bottle convenient?  Not to mention making sure all those bottle parts are cleaned and sterilized.  How is getting up in the middle of the night, stumbling down the stairs and into the kitchen to make a bottle at 3 am convenient?    How is making sure you have enough formula, bottles, nipples, and clean water before you leave the house to go anywhere convenient?

When my baby lets me know she's hungry, I pull down or pull up my shirt depending on what kind I'm wearing and there we go.  My milk will never be recalled for beetle infestations, it's always the perfect temperature, and as long as I've had a shower in the last day (or two) I know what she's drinking her milk from is clean.  When my baby wakes up in the middle of the night, I roll over and pick her up out of the cosleeper, lay her down beside me and she nurses snuggled up with me.  When she's done, back in the cosleeper she goes and right back to sleep I go.  All without setting foot out of the bed (unless of course a diaper change is warranted).  Oh and I can't imagine having to add anything else to my already packed diaper bag.  If I were to formula feed, I think I would have to carry an extra bag just for feeding supplies when I left the house!

Ok, just returned from a diaper explosion, cleanup and bath.  Now where were we?  Oh my next comparison.  Breastfeeding in public.  I've read that some women are nervous or even scared to breastfeed in public.  I'm not sure why.  Are these women worried about what people will think?  I cannot count the number of comments, or compliments rather, I get when people see me nursing in public.  I do so discretely using a receiving blanket to cover up anything someone might see.  I never saw the purpose in spending money on all those fancy cover ups when the receiving blankets you get for free at your baby shower do the same job.  Anyway, people always want to tell me "I think it's great what you're doing" or something along those lines.  I'm not asking for compliments when I have to nurse when I'm not at home.  Trust me, I'd much rather be curled up in the same chair I'm in now every time I had to nurse (except of course at night).  I nurse in public because it's a necessity to feed your baby when she's hungry.  The compliments are a complete bonus.  So for moms who are worried about what people might think about you nursing your baby in public, trust me....they think it's great!

Ok I didn't mean to write a book on this, but I knew as soon as I read that other blog last night this was something I had to write about too.  I'm very passionate about this topic.  It's my children's health and well-being at stake.  I am so grateful that I was able to breastfeed Gray for 14 months and I plan on doing the same for our new baby girl.

Try and try again

So I think last week was just a test run for my new goals, and boy did I fail that test!  Just thinking the word "diet" made me crave food more, and I wanted to eat everything in the fridge and pantry.  I made that chocolate cake again one night (on what should have been day 2 of my plan), and I really would love to just eat one of those cakes after every meal!  I'm sure I would have made it a few more times if I hadn't of run out of eggs last week.  I also had pad thai and pizza which I'm pretty sure would blow any diet.  We finished off the week at a pitch-in for a family reunion.  There was so much goodness there to eat and with lots of family eager to hold the baby girl, I had my hands free to dig into all of it!

It's a new week now, and it's time to make some real changes.  I've decided I'm not on a "diet".  The word just makes me hungry!  I can't diet right now anyway.  Cutting out too many calories could be detrimental to my milk supply and I think a certain baby girl might not be too happy about that!  I just need to eat smarter.  I made a pretty successful trip to the grocery store today (taking only the child that can't throw food out of the cart really helps), and I think I stocked up on some things that should help me make some better choices this week:  oatmeal, fat-free milk, unsweetened applesauce, salads, veggies,  lean turkey, etc.  A certain someone was a little disappointed that I didn't make it home with ice cream.  I ran out of time before I even had a chance to go down that isle (ie Alia was getting hungry).  And that's probably for the better.

I found our scale hiding under some paint supplies in the closet so I'll be starting off this week knowing exactly what I weigh now.  I also know exactly where I want to be.  I just hope that's enough motivation for me.

I made chicken tostadas again for dinner last night.  But this time I baked the whole wheat tortillas instead of frying them.  That's a start.  Oatmeal and iced Teeccino (with fat-free milk) for breakfast.  I've been wary about trying those "healthier" milks but with those new commercials enlightening me that a glass of 2% milk has more saturated fat than an order of French fries, I thought it was time try one.  Looking at the price of a carton of Smart Balance vs a gallon of regular milk though it's a wonder how people can afford to drink the stuff.  Luckily for me, I had clipped a $2 off coupon and the store had it on sale for $2.99 yesterday.  At only 99 cents a carton, it is definitely worth trying!

Now to get caught up on housework and work in a trip to the park or a few laps around the neighborhood with the stroller.  Or both.  We'll see!

Happily exhausted!

It has been one busy week.  I'm not sure I've stuck to all my food goals (and by that I mean I definitely haven't), but I have at least left the house for a little bit every day.  Well except for today, but I've still got time.  I need to run to the grocery store which I suppose could count towards my very vague rule of getting out of the house.  Even though the intention of that rule was to go for a walk or to the park everyday.  Like I said before, it's a work in progress!

I have been working on the house and making a lot of progress this week though.  I made a nice dent in the boxes and totes in the front room and just finished clearing out the living room of all non-living room things.  I absolutely love how spacious and wonderful this room feels now.  If only it was actually finished though.  This room has not been painted yet and the rest of the new carpet is waiting patiently in the warehouse at my uncle's store.  But today, I can finally get a sense for what this room will feel like once it's finished and that makes me smile!

Gray is pretty happy too.  He's got a TV in the loft now along with his computer desk.  He's watching a Bob the Builder dvd at the moment, and I couldn't be happier about breaking my no-TV-before-6-p.m. rule.  The peace and quiet down here in the living room watching Alia sleep is well worth it!  And it's a short dvd that doesn't auto repeat so he'll be down here before too long I'm sure.

I'm almost caught up on laundry, another activity that should surely be considered an aerobic workout.  Especially in a two-story house with the laundry room on the first floor. I'm also convinced that somehow the laundry always knows when everything is almost clean and put away at which point it instantly multiplies into a dozen more loads!  I have all the dishes washed as well.  Another never ending task around here since we have not yet bought a dishwasher!

If I don't manage to get another thing done today, I won't mind. It's been a busy yet productive morning and early afternoon.  I think I've been trying to keep my mind off the sadness of Prince Poppycock only coming in fourth place on AGT last night.  He deserved to win!  I really hope he keeps performing, and I know Link and I would definitely buy tickets to one of his shows.  Maybe we'll get lucky and he'll be performing in Las Vegas when we go out there to get married! =)

Day 1

Well it's a start.  If I could find our scale I'd go get an accurate weight for my first day starting towards my new weight loss goal.  However, I have a pretty good idea where I stand.  Eating wise I didn't do too bad today, at least until the French bread came out of the oven with dinner tonight.

I started off the day with some old fashioned Quaker oats, sweetened with cinnamon and raisins.  I actually measured to make sure I made enough for only one serving. I never do that!  For lunch I had a hamburger leftover from the grill yesterday.  I ate it on a whole wheat bun with lettuce, tomato, and red onion only.  No ketchup or mayonnaise!  I was proud that I actually ate raw onion and surprised that I actually didn't want to spit it out!  I had a glass of lemonade and split a banana with Gray for a sweet little dessert.  When we got back from the park, I counted out 16 wheat thins for a quick snack.  Dinner consisted of a  bowl of homemade lentil soup and French bread.

I know I ate way more of the bread than I should have, but it is virtually fat free and I ate it plain.  I did all the work to make it so that has to count for something right?  And there was definitely no need to add butter or anything but a little broth from the soup to that warm crusty bread.  I think I'm going to slice up the rest of the loaf to try a healthier version of French toast for breakfast in the morning.  The recipe is just like any other French toast recipe with just a few minor modifications.  It calls for soaking the bread in a mixture of egg whites and low fat milk along with the typical vanilla and cinnamon and cooking on a griddle sprayed with cooking spray instead of melted butter.  I always use a low calorie sugar free maple syrup so that will round things out quite nicely.

Besides working on eating healthier, I have to work on getting more active.  It's hard to convince myself some days that grocery shopping and laundry are not aerobic activities (even though I've left the grocery store sweating from having to handle 2 kids and a cart full of groceries).  I found this website tonight that is a complete eye opener.  It allows you to list your current weight and the amount of calories you'd like to burn off.  Then it displays a list of common activities and various sports and exercises and tells you how long you would have to do that activity to burn the amount of calories you selected.  It really makes you think twice when you want a snack.  Look at the package and see how many calories it is, and then plug that number into the website.  See if it's really worth all that time running, bicycling or whatever else and decide if you really want to eat it!  Makes it much easier to return that snack to the shelf or the fridge (or better yet, the trash!).

I did stick to my new rule and got out of the house today (something else that should be classified as an aerobic activity around here!)  I thoroughly enjoyed walking along the trails at the park today, but it was more of a leisurely walk pushing Alia the stroller, stopping frequently for Gray to check out rocks or pick up a leaf.  He also enjoyed some time on their playground which is much bigger than the park right beside our house.  I wish I had been able to do a little more "moving" though.  I'd love to go for a jog in the mornings when I get up, but it's just not an option.  I'll figure out something eventually.  It's all a work in progress!

A New Direction

I changed the blog's tagline this morning.  I need a little more motivation, and I'm hoping this venue will be just that.  I didn't gain too much weight while I was pregnant with Alia and had lost pretty much all of it within days of having her.   However I am not content with where I am at now because I had never completely lost the weight I had gained with Gray.  I still have a good ways to go.  I don't want to give an exact starting weight on here though.  You've heard the old saying "never ask a woman her age," well that applies to weight as well.  It's my own "don't ask, don't tell" policy.  I am going to look for some way to visually track my progress on here, perhaps showing the percentage I am towards my goal.

I actually have several new goals.  My first goal is to lose between 20-25 pounds by Christmas.  Normally I would say that isn't possible, but my sister has already proved the possibilities over the last few months.  I chose Christmas because every goal needs a deadline and 14 weeks is a very realistic deadline for that kind of weight loss.  Plus I really want to wear my gray cashmere sweater on Christmas day.  I haven't been able to fit into in a few years and it will be something I can look at every day in my closet and get excited about.  I intend to surround myself with more motivation and less chocolate.  I really wish now that I hadn't played around with that 5-minute chocolate cake recipe.

My next goal is to cook healthier way more often.  I'm going to be scouring the Internet for the best healthy (and edible!) recipes I can find.  My downfall is I love the Food Network and I love to try new recipes, but most of them are absolutely horrendous when you look at the calories and fat per serving!  I was so happy for Aarti to win the Next Food Network Star because of the Indian flare she would bring to the Food Network, however if Herb had won I'd have some very healthy yet flavorful recipes to be making right now instead!  I don't plan on having a super healthy dinner every single night of the week, but I do plan on making every meal healthier in some way and allowing splurges as rewards for maintaining my goals.

Last week I instituted a policy of no television until 6 p.m. during the week.  I decided Gray and I watched too much of it.  I plan on keeping this up not only to cut down on the number of food commercials we watch but to cut down on the number of shows I watch on Food Network.  Luckily for me, Good Eats doesn't come on till 11 p.m. so I can still catch Alton Brown!  He lost a ton of weight last year, and I think we'll be employing some of his strategies around here as well.  One of his rules was no processed or fast foods.  Ever.  While I can't guarantee I'll stick to this, I am going to make a huge effort to do much better with how much fast food we eat and what kind.

Besides eating better, I need to get more active.  Another goal I have is to get out of the house every day, weather permitting.  We have a park that takes only minutes to walk to and I should be there more!  Our neighborhood has dedicated walking trails that follow nicely along some of the retention ponds in the addition.  It makes for some really enjoyable walks and a great opportunity for me to point out some plants and animals to Gray as well.  And if I'm out there, I'm not sitting down in here.

So that's the initial plan.  Be more active and eat better.  And with breastfeeding Alia as well I should have no problem meeting that first goal.  Look for future posts to contain progress reports and any fantastically healthy recipes I come across worth sharing!  Now I'm off to go enjoy a bowl of oatmeal and some Teeccino!  Wish me luck!

Hello Fall

Fall, oh how do I love thee.  Let me count the ways.  Fall is and probably always will be my favorite time of the year.  There is just something about these overcast skies and gentle cool breezes that just make me want to melt into my big comfy robe and curl up with a hot mug of coffee (or Teeccino since I can't do the caffeine right now).  I love that we've turned the AC off and have all the windows open from now until it gets too cold to stand it, which hopefully won't be until November!

Growing up, fall meant the beginning of a new school year, marching band, bonfires, and apple butter.  Things I looked forward to all year long.  I loved school, maybe too much.  My sisters teased me for doing homework on a Friday night, although I'm pretty sure that only happened in the beginning of the school year when I was bound and determined to be the perfect student.  That enthusiasm did wear off a few months into the school year though.  I loved competition too.  Marching band contests all day every Saturday.  Surviving on ham sandwiches and Mountain Dew.  Bonfires on Friday nights if there wasn't a home football game.  We were a big family, and for as much time as you spend away from home at practices and contests it had to be!  Luckily for me though, my actual family was a part of my marching band family as well.

What else was there?  Oh yes, my grandma's apple butter!  Wow. My cousin and his wife made some for everyone in the family last Christmas and oh what a treat it was!  I need to get the recipe and try making this for myself sometime.  Maybe it can become a Fall tradition that I pass along to my children.  I love family traditions possibly more than I love apple butter!  I can't wait to take the kids to an orchard this fall.  I think that will be added to the family tradition checklist as well!

I am ecstatic that fall is finally here.  I wore my Danskos and Smart Wool socks for the first time this season yesterday.  A huge thank you to my sister for making sure my feet stay comfortable!  I cleaned out our coat closet to make sure there would be room to hang up fall jackets, both ours and our guests.  Now I just need to work on some of these still packed boxes and find all of our fall clothes.  I'm sure one day, maybe in a couple years, we'll have everything unpacked and be ready for that housewarming party!

Now I'm off to go prepare some hamburgers for the grill.  This may be the best part of fall.  It's not too cold to grill out, and it's not so hot that you don't even want to open the door to go outside!  I hope everyone is enjoying this time of year as much as I am!

So proud!

I couldn't be more proud and apparently neither could Gray because he used that exact word.  He just "dirtied" in the potty on his own, and we both are ecstatic!

He was playing upstairs and when he realized he needed to use the bathroom he came down the stairs announcing he had to dirty!  I followed him into the bathroom where he sat down on his little potty and did his business.  We both cheered!  I said "I'm so happy!" and he replied, "I'm so proud!"  What am amazing thought from a little boy who's not even three years old yet.

He's been in training pants for a year now and we've had great success with him doing #1 in the potty, but he has been more stubborn than a mule at going #2.  We've tried every bribe in the book: rewards, charts, lots of praise, you name it.  Nothing has worked.  I've read lots of similar stories from other moms online, and most of them said he'll do it when he's ready and just give him time.  This is hard to do especially when you add in another child who makes plenty of dirty diapers of her own!

We celebrated this momentous occasion with an Oreo cookie, and Gray couldn't wait to tell Daddy as soon as he got home.  I hope this is not a one time occurance though, and I hope this can mark the end of potty training and beginning of big boy pants for Gray!  I'm sure he hasn't forgotten about the Curious George underwear that Grammy promised him when he became potty trained!

My Chocolate Fix

The other day I saw a tweet by The Next Food Network Star winner, Aarti Sequeira, about a 5 minute chocolate cake.  The recipe is from Instructables.com and sounded amazing.  I mean who wouldn't want a fantastic warm chocolaty dessert in just 5 minutes.  Unfortunately I didn't have any chocolate chips on hand when I saw the recipe or I would have been making it right away.

After picking up some chocolate chips on one trip to the grocery store and a new set of measuring spoons on a second trip to the grocery store, I finally had everything I needed to make this cake.  I decided to do so as a bedtime snack last night.  I was sorely disappointed with the result.  What came out of the microwave looked and smelled like a wonderful chocolate cake, however once that forkful of deliciousness hit my mouth it was a whole different story.  It was anything but delicious.  I couldn't fathom how something could smell so good and look exactly like a piece of cake (icing excluded) yet taste so horrible!

I couldn't stop thinking about it.  After all there had been a ton of raving comments about the recipe and I couldn't imagine people raving about the nasty stuff I had sitting in a cup on my counter.  So I started reading through them to see where I went wrong.  It seems almost everyone had their own take on this recipe, many people trying gluten free substitutes or just adding an array of other goodies to it.  After a few pages I found what I needed to know.  Experimentation was the key and altering a couple ingredients was all that was needed.

The most important part of getting this cake to turn out right is that everything must be mixed really well.  Although a coffee mug is perfect for "baking" this cake in the microwave, it is not the perfect vessel for mixing it.  And if you think about it, you don't mix a cake batter in the pan that you bake it in the oven in do you?  So I got a small mixing bowl out and started working.

Mix all of the dry ingredients, adding a pinch of baking soda, really well with a whisk in a bowl.  I used all purpose flour and regular granulated sugar but many commenters on the recipes page suggested that other types of flour and sugar worked just as well.  Then I added 1 egg, whisked, to the dry ingredients.  The recipe only calls for 2 Tbsp of the whisked egg, but since that's what I had used in my first attempt and the results were less than pleasing, I decided to see what happened when I used the whole egg.  And why waste part of a perfectly good egg anyway?  Once the egg is mixed in, add the milk and oil and stir well.  Then add your vanilla and chocolate chips.  I want to point out that you only need a little touch of vanilla.  If you add too much vanilla you could flambe your cake into a terrible mess in the microwave.  Vanilla extract contains alcohol and could catch fire!  When everything is all mixed in, pour the batter into a standard size coffee mug.

There was a lot of debate in the reviews on how long to microwave the cake.  In my initial attempt at this cake I let it go for just over 3 minutes.  I was using a larger coffee mug and couldn't see the cake rise (or fall) while it was in the microwave so I couldn't tell when it was actually done.  Using a standard size coffee mug, you will see the cake rise up over the top of the mug while it's cooking.  If it starts to fall, it's gone too long!  My second time making this cake, it was in the microwave a little over 2 minutes.  You can stop the microwave and check your cake at any time, and reviews claimed that it's better to pull it out too soon than let it overcook in the microwave.  After all it will continue to cook a little after you take it out of the microwave and let it cool a bit.

It's up to you whether or not you want to eat it straight out of the mug or turn it out onto a dish.  I had no problems getting it out of the mug, and this allows you to cut the cake and share it.  There's definitely plenty to do so!  I wish I would have taken a picture of it this time to share, but I couldn't wait to dig into it and neither could Gray.  I'm so glad that I was curious enough to try this again!

The joys of repetition

It takes so long to get ready and get 2 kids out of the house to go anywhere these days.  I feel like all I really got done yesterday was make 2 trips to the grocery store (however I did manage to get that shower I put off from the day before!).  On the first trip, after I had already been around the entire store, checked out and was ready to leave, I discovered that Gray had discarded Alia's blanket and bonnet somewhere without my knowledge.  So I had to retrace my steps back around the store until I found them lying on the floor behind a clothes rack I had stopped to look at!

On the way home Gray informed me that he was tired and promptly fell asleep in his carseat.  I hate when this happens because it means he will not be napping at home!  It was also such a short nap because it only lasted until we got back to the house that he felt the need to repeat his nap in his carseat on the way to my second trip to the store a couple hours later.

I did not intend on having a repeat trip to the store yesterday until I went in my kitchen to try this 5-minute chocolate cake-in-a-cup recipe and discovered that all of my measuring spoons were missing!  Now I had just used these a couple days before while making some homemade waffles and after a thorough check and double-check of the sink, dish drainer, and every other drawer in the kitchen, I interviewed the only culprit in the house:  Gray.  He informs me that he doesn't remember what he did with them, and then with a look of utter disbelief says "oh no, we'll never find them!"  I'm guessing that's a very true statement!

So back to the store I went.  I had to have measuring spoons and of course the Wheat Thins and ice cream that I also picked up when I went back!  I did not make the chocolate cake that I was planning on however, I decided to use up some ripe bananas and make a banana cake with chocolate frosting instead.  FYI, sugar-free chocolate frosting is terrible.  Although most of you probably already were aware of this because after all the name "sugar-free" implies this important fact!  I should have done my homemade cream cheese frosting for this banana cake like I did the last time I made it, but I thought a quick and "healthier" icing would be better for me.  I think it may turn out to be better for me though because now I'm not sure I will eat any more of the cake!

The other thing I revisited yesterday was a Tyler Florence recipe for sweet potato matchsticks.  Here is a YouTube video of him fixing them.  I absolutely love them, however I'm not sure they're worth the effort considering how long it takes to cut up a sweet potato into tiny little matchsticks and the fact that I caught my stove on fire again while making them.

So yesterday was a day of repeats.  Here's to hoping I can get more done today with only doing things once...well excluding breast feeding, diaper changes, cooking, and all those other things that have to happen more than once!

There's a first time for everything

I've been thinking, I need a way to keep everyone up to date on things and more importantly just keep track of everything besides updating my status on Facebook.  I've always loved writing and the ease of sharing information in "written" form.  I'd much rather write a book (or read one) than pick up my cell phone.  I hate my cellphone, but maybe we'll save that for a later blog, since this is supposed to be my introduction to this whole blog venture anyway.

So my plan for this forum is to keep anyone who reads it in the know about my life, my family, my ventures in the kitchen, and anything else I feel like writing about.  As a stay-at-home mom of 2 now, I'll probably end up with lots of short little blogs about randomness as time to sit down and plan one of these things is limited.  Right now it's late and fortunately both are sleeping, therefore I have a few moments to spare!  I should be sneaking in a shower or folding the laundry that's in the dryer, but I'll probably go to bed and plan on getting that shower in tomorrow and just restarting the dryer when I wake up.  I'm busy setting up a blog at the moment anyway!

A little about me for those that aren't aware or just forgot:  I'm 26 years old.  I have an almost 3 year old son named Gray and a 6 week old daughter named Alia ( \All-ee-uh\).  I'm engaged.  I have a twin sister!  I have a bachelor's degree in Computer and Information Technology.  I've recently fulfilled my lifelong dream of having a pickup truck that I actually get to drive!  I love the Food Network and trying out new recipes, especially those by Alton Brown.  If I think of anything else important to share, well you know...that's what this is for!

So here's to my first blog.  I hope anyone who reads this finds it interesting, worthwhile, and meaningful.  After all I am spending those rare free moments to share these future tidbits of wisdom and insights with you!  Look for upcoming topics to include new baby excitements, toddler adventures, and recipe reviews.  Enjoy!