A day worth remembering.

Yesterday was a great day. Not for any special reason, but it was a great relaxing day spent with the family. We had a busy morning, working around the house, but then the afternoon lead to drinking Shipyard Pumpkin Ale and brewing beer...which was so fun! It was nice to spend some time with Mark doing things together. It seems like we haven't had the chance to do that lately.

Big step for us yesterday...we gave Breckan the bottle for the first time. He took it like a champ - 2.5 ozs in less than 5 minutes. I guess we won't be having problems with the bottle! YAY.

Below are some photos of our day!

 

 

Beer

I have found a new micro brew that I am in love with. Well...two micro brews from the same brewer. What is the name of this brewing company, you ask? Sea Dog. A brewer from Maine, Sea Dog started in 1993 and all their beers seem to have a crisp finish to them. I have only had the opportunity to try two of their beers, the Blue Paw Wheat Ale and the Raspberry Wheat Ale. I LOVE fruit beers, and these are no exception. I could not resist the temptation of little blueberries floating around in my beer, or raspberries for that matter! As described on Sea Dog's site the Blue Paw Wheat Ale "features the nutty quench of wheat ale combined with the delightful aromatics and subtle fruit flavor contributed by Maine wild blueberries." and the Raspberry Wheat Ale is " a dry, crisp refreshing ale with the added essence of raspberries." MMMMM can you resist??

I was able to find this beer at Whole Foods down here in Florida, and I would assume that any specialty grocery store would carry this brand.

Basket Baby

 

I think babies in baskets are so adorable. So this morning, I got up and set up a basket outside for Breckan to lay in and be my model! Gotta love it.... 

My Aunt made the blanket that is under Breckan. It reminds me of my Grandmother. She used to crochet a bunch of blankets, and always made us a baby blanket. Thank you Aunt Bobbi for continuing the tradition!

I really need to research photography stuff. I am so interested in being better at it, and since I haven't studied f-stops and shutter speed since I was in high school, I have no idea what I am doing with all the settings available on my camera. So...here's to trying to get my butt in gear.

Where has the time gone?

As I sit here and type, I can't help but wonder where the past five weeks have gone. Since Breckan came into our lives, we have been strictly focused on him and now as I look back, it has gone by so fast. My little boy is growing everyday, and I have never been more in love in my life. I can't help but stare at this little boy that was made from ME and my husband. HOW COOL!

I am breastfeeding, and that was very difficult at the start. I wondered if my boobs will EVER feel like they used to, because WOW it was painful. At about three weeks I finally felt relief, and now it has been easy as pie. I even have a little stash built up from pumping. We are planning to introduce the bottle next week and see how it goes. He needs to get used to eating from Daddy, because he will be feeding him when I am at work. It should be interesting!

5 weeks old in his GroBaby diaper!

Cloth diapering is a lot easier than I thought it would be too. I knew that it might be a pain in the butt to wash them all the time, but it is definitely more convenient, and a lot softer on his bum. When Breckan was in the disposable diapers for the first two weeks, since his umbilical cord hadn't fallen off, he had a red bum at all times. Now, he is as fresh as a cucumber with his cute little clothies!!! I have decided to switch to cloth wipes as well, because it seems like it would be more convenient - only one pail, instead of two.

The first two weeks, all Breckan would do is eat, sleep and poop/pee. Now he is more alert, and stays up much more. It is so neat to see him explore the world around him. His favorite thing to watch is the fan moving around! I always see him looking up in awe. It is amazing that something so simple could keep him entertained. If only we all were entertained by such things!

My little boy is everything that I imagined he would be and more. He is such a cute little monkey boy, and I am looking forward to all the fun times we will have together. We love going on walks, and he loves the car. Every time we go for a walk, or go in the car, he passes out! It must be the movement.

I never knew I could function off of such little sleep! But, Breckan is worth it. Some days are good, some are bad, but I cannot WAIT for the day that he sleeps through the night. What a relief that would be! It should be interesting going back to work and having such little amount of sleep...but hey, women did it before me, right?!

Until next time,

Ooey-Gooey Double-Chocolate Cookies

From: LA Times
These cookies are OH SO GOOD! They are gooey in the middle, and rich in chocolate taste. I was looking for a new recipe on the internet and stumbled across these. I decided to make them because Mark enjoys cookies with a chewy texture, and this was definitely the recipe for it!

Ingredients:
4 oz unsweetened chocolate
4 T (1/2 stick) butter
3 eggs
2 t vanilla extract
1 C sugar
1/2 C flour
2 T cocoa powder
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
2 C (1 lb) bittersweet chocolate

Directions:
1. In a bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt the unsweetened chocolate and butter. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
2. In the bowl of a mixer with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a fork, combine the eggs, vanilla and sugar. Mix just until incorporated and set aside.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.
4. Add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture and mix just until combined. Stir in the sifted dry ingredients and mix just until combined, then stir in the bittersweet chocolate.
5. Cover the batter with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to chill thoroughly. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
6. Divide the dough into ~18 portions. Grease your hands (to prevent the dough from sticking) and shape the portions into balls. Place the balls on a greased, parchment-lined sheet pan, leaving 2 to 3 inches between each.
7. Bake until the edges of the cookies are just set and the center is still soft, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Place the cookies, still on the parchment, on a rack and cool completely before serving. They will be very soft.