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A Letter to Brayden – 2 Months

Dearest Brayden-
Today marks your second month and your sister’s second birthday. I know I have said it once and I will continue to say this until the day I die, but time is flying by. Maybe now that holidays are upon us and are soon to pass, time will slow down. I am slightly sad that it is going by so fast because you are my last baby and I don’t want to miss anything. While our days are crazy from the moment we wake I have found it a lot harder to document your life because I am constantly chasing after your sister. I am more than thankful that you are such a calm baby. When friends and family meet you they often say that they have yet to hear you cry because you only cry when you are hungry or have a wet diaper. You also slept for over nine hours without me dream feeding you. I am very grateful and not getting excited because I know once you have your surgery your small world will be turned upside down until you heal. On the subject of your surgery it has been scheduled for February 1st at 7:30 am. I am more than excited because I know this will turn a new leaf as it will be behind us. While I still have mixed emotions about your wide smile leaving your sweet face I know it is the best decision for your future. Speaking of smiles, we have finally gotten real non-gassy smiles and it melts my heart. You are really watching your surroundings and follow my movements throughout the room. You are holding your head up and it’s getting more stable with each passing day. I love waking up to you cooing and smiling at me, I cherish our quiet moments together. I just stare at you and your gorgeous baby blues and your too long to handle brown lashes, they make me kiss your face uncontrollably. Your sister adores you and I mean adores you. When she wakes up and sees you for the first time she greets you with, “ahhh! baby, I love you”. I might have to remind you both about these moments in a few years when the bickering begins but for now I am savoring your innocent love for one another. We all love you buddy, buddy.

Two-Month Stats & Facts:

Weighing in at 10 pounds 9.3 ounces – up 3.5 pounds in one month. You are catching your sister ‘s numbers and making great progress! This might have something to do with giving you AR formula. I don’t have percentages because we had a screaming sister in the room for her two-year appointment as well.
21.85 inches – up and 1.5 inches in a month.
You received your shots and you handled it like a champ. Once I could put you in my arms you were golden. You were a little fussy that afternoon and then slept the entire next day.
Size 1 diapers
Size 3-6 clothing
Drinking 4-6 ounces at a feeding.
You love your activity mat, swing and watching our everyday chaos.
You found your hands and love your fingers. I am sad that you find comfort in them because once you have surgery they will constrained for two weeks.
You are a total mama’s boy 🙂

♥

Fa-La-La’ing with Cinnamon Rolls

I am a long time follower of The Pioneer Woman so when I was watching her Christmas special on the Food Network I knew I wanted to add her cinnamon rolls to our Christmas breakfast. I have only used yeast a few times, and while I am a baker I am not one to bake bread, ever. I have failed miserably but I blame my lack of patience. If I had a bread machine, maybe, since it does all the work for you. When you are placing the dough in bowls and praying for the temperature gods to be on your side, as it sits to rise it is way too much for me, too much of a commitment wasted if it fails. I decided to give PW’s recipe a go because she is so likeable and she’s the real deal. I set out the night before Christmas Eve, tears swelling my eyes (totally having a Like Water from Chocolate experience) from being over tired and the pressure of baking a red velvet cheesecake at the same time (that recipe is up next). Have you caught on that I take on too much at one time yet? Oh! and did I mention it was already 11:30 PM? Yeah, well it was and I am nuts. Luckily for me, the yeast gods were in my favor and Santa must have thought I was a good girl this year because I was able to add these soft, gooey buns to our Christmas breakfast table along to our neighbors as well. They were a hit and will become a holiday staple for year’s to come. I plan on making them again for New Year’s morning but a slight variation so stay tuned for that recipe as well!

Recipe Directly From: Pioneer Woman

(My notes are in Pink, excuse the photo lighting, remember it was late!)

Ingredients

1 quart Whole Milk
1 cup Vegetable Oil
1 cup Sugar
2 packages Active Dry Yeast, 0.25 Ounce Packets
8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Separated) All-purpose Flour *It took 2 additional cups of APF as I turned it out to roll.
1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
Plenty Of Melted Butter
2 cups Sugar
Generous Sprinkling Of Cinnamon
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MAPLE FROSTING:
1 bag Powdered Sugar One pound or four cups
2 teaspoons Maple Flavoring *I used Maple Syrup
1/2 cup Milk
1/4 cup Melted Butter
1/4 cup Brewed Coffee *I used Starbucks Caramel Via
1/8 teaspoon Salt

Preparation Instructions

For the dough, heat the milk, vegetable oil, and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat to just below a boil. Set aside and cool to warm. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let it sit on the milk for 1 minute.

Add 8 cups of the flour. Stir until just combined, then cover with a clean kitchen towel, and set aside in a relatively warm place for 1 hour. After 1 hour, remove the towel and add the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and the remaining 1 cup flour (if your dough is still really sticky add in additional flour, it took me two additional cups) Stir thoroughly to combine. Use the dough right away, or place in a mixing bowl and refrigerate for up to 3 days, punching down the dough if it rises to the top of the bowl. (Note: dough is easier to work with if it’s been chilled for at least an hour or so beforehand.)

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

To assemble the rolls, remove half the dough from the pan/bowl. On a floured baking surface, roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 30 x 10 inches. The dough should be rolled very thin.

To make the filling, pour 3/4 cup to 1 cup of the melted butter over the surface of the dough. Use your fingers to spread the butter evenly. Generously sprinkle half of the ground cinnamon and 1 cup of the sugar over the butter. Don’t be afraid to drizzle on more butter or more sugar! Gooey is the goal.

Now, beginning at the end farthest from you, roll the rectangle tightly towards you. Use both hands and work slowly, being careful to keep the roll tight. Don’t worry if the filling oozes as you work; that just means the rolls are going to be divine. When you reach the end, pinch the seam together and flip the roll so that the seam is face down. When you’re finished, you’ll wind up with one long buttery, cinnamony, sugary, gooey log.

Slip a cutting board underneath the roll and with a sharp knife, make 1/2-inch slices. One “log “will produce 20 to 25 rolls. Pour a couple of teaspoons of melted butter into disposable foil cake pans and swirl to coat. Place the sliced rolls in the pans, being careful not to overcrowd. (Each pan will hold 7 to 9 rolls.) i cut directly on the foil, it did not tear. If you don’t want your rolls to look squeezed see her notes in Cinnamon Roll 101 on chilling the log first. I was working against time as I looked at unwrapped gifts.

Repeat the rolling/sugar/butter process with the other half of the dough and more pans. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Cover all the pans with a kitchen towel and set aside to rise on the countertop for at least 20 minutes before baking. Remove the towel and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown. Don’t allow the rolls to become overly brown.

Remove pans from the oven. Immediately drizzle icing over the top. Be sure to get it all around the edges and over the top. As they sit, the rolls will absorb some of the icing’s moisture and flavor. They only get better with time… not that they last for more than a few seconds. Make them for a friend today! It’ll seal the relationship for life. I promise. She isn’t lying folks. We gave these to all our immediate neighbors, even the ones directly next door that we dislike and the young man’s eyes lit up and overjoyed he gave Jim a, “thanks man!” our other neighbor said if we saw him walking up and down the street it was because of my baking. This is a new tradition and something I will bake for our neighbors and family year after year!

Yum! I am a new cinnamon roll baking addict. Beware friends. waaaa-ha-ha!

A Letter to Brayden – 1 Month

Dearest Brayden-
I cannot believe you are already a month, it seems like we just brought you home yesterday. Time is surely flying by a lot faster with you being home with us now. You are such a sweet and calm baby boy. You definitely get this from your daddy, because we know I am anything but calm. I do have to say that since you have arrived I have been a lot more calm, maybe not so much when you and your sister cry at the same time or choose to have opposite nap times but this will all get better with time. Your eating habits have gotten much better and you are now taking two to four ounces with ease. The days in the hospital where I thought we would have a really difficult time feeding because of the cleft (taking in too much air and spitting everything out) have all gone away now that you have figured out how to suck. While I tried to breastfeed you it did not work because we really needed to see how much you were consuming since you lost 1+ pound after birth. This time around I am okay with this outcome unlike with your sister. I know you are thriving and honestly, that’s all that matters in the end. Dr. Martinez was also watching you for jaundice, you had several bilirubin tests to rule it out and after two weeks you have been cleared. You also had your first ultrasound on your kidneys to check them now that you’re an outside baby. The results concluded that your right kidney is still dilated and you have to go in for a small procedure. We also met with your surgeon, Dr. Sinow, for your surgery consultation. He completely ruled out the cleft palate now that he could see all the way down your throat unlike in the hospital when you just screamed at him. We went over the procedure and he said that we can expect the surgery to be performed around the three to four month mark instead of two to three since you were technically a preemie. You need to gain some additional weight and stay healthy and then it’s a go! This first month has been full of appointments, excitement and joy; you truly fit right in to our crazy little family. Daddy and I truly don’t know what life was like without you in it, because it seems like you have always been here. You complete my heart and our family. I love you sweet, sweet boy.

One-Month Stats:

7 pounds 4.4 ounces – finally catching up to your almost birth weight
20.3 inches, up 1.3 since you were born.
Still in newborn diapers and size 0-3 month clothing. You are a skinny little one!
You love the swing which is amazing for mommy.
You sleep in two to three hour intervals and the longest you have gone is five hours.
Nicknames: baby brady (sissy), buddy buddy, turtle, b, brady, boo-boo and love bug.

Maple Walnut Fudge

Do you have that one holiday treat that brings back memories from your childhood? I know I sure do. For me it was always my Grandma’s chocolaty fudge and her peanut butter burst cookies. I can still hear her thumbing through the large round silver tins, the candy wrappers nudging one another as she found that perfect piece to give us in the “cookie room”. Well, she didn’t have an actual cookie room it was her spare room which was lined in tins because she always said that room was the perfect temp to store such items. I miss that room, I miss her baked goods. So, at the holidays my sister and I always bake our favs from our dear Grandma Barr, I always do at least the Norwegian shortbread and tea cakes. Never do they taste the same but we try.

Back to the fudge. I have only tried making true handmade fudge once or twice, I am successful at quick fudge but “real” fudge has always been a challenge. I always find great looking recipes but using a candy therm can be challenging. Last night I decided to give this recipe a go, but of course I ended up talking to my sister from 205 degrees until 235 and I was worried when I did the water test. In the end this was way easy and truly is the best fudge ever. I was shooting for a true shore fudge for the hubby to savor since he hasn’t been back home in years and he approves!

MAPLE WALNUT FUDGE

recipe directly from the last wonton

1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon sea or Kosher salt
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 cups chopped Callebaut or other good quality white chocolate
1 cup walnuts, roughly chopped and toasted
2 teaspoons vanilla

Add the two sugars, cream, butter, salt and maple syrup to large-ish pot over medium heat. Stir while bringing to a boil. Lower the heat and continue to stir slowly while the mixture cooks. After about 7 minutes, test by pouring a small amount into cold water. You want it to form a soft ball. Or use candy thermometer to 235F – 238F – soft ball stage. When it reaches the soft ball stage remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes.

After 10-15 minutes add the white chocolate and vanilla and stir until chocolate melts. You will notice the fudge start to thicken immediately. Stir another couple of minutes until the fudge starts to lose it’s shine. Quickly add the walnuts and pour into a buttered double loaf pan or dish. Let cool at room temperature. Chill.

Best served chilled. Now you have the best fudge recipe in the world.

Santa’s wap?

Like the saying goes, third times a charm, right? Well, not completely but it wasn’t a total fail for big sis’ third Santa visit. I have been building this visit up for weeks. Watching movies, through song, books, lights, you name it, I’ve tried it. If either of us asked her, do you want to go see Santa? We’d get a huge “yaay!” but if you then asked, are you going to sit on his lap? We’d get a loud, definite, “NO! Stop it!” I really tried the morning of and she was pretty convinced, she was curious while waiting in line and when were next she kept exclaiming, “my turn!” But, once I placed ‘lil brother on his lap and then her she just wanted mommy. I can’t blame her though, this is the same Santa she saw last year but this year someone must have eaten his cookies because he was cranky. Oh well. After the photo she happily ate her “canny cane” and kept saying, “Santa’s wap”. Next year she’ll jump the fearing Santa hump and he’ll fall right into fearing him.

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Don’t you love B’s lumberjack look? I just wanted to squeeze him all day.

Riding the train afterwards.

And for fun…