I am a soccer mom. Nevermind that our little player prefers to sit on his ball and watch the other kids do their thing. He wears a jersey (t-shirt) and we have some place very important to be at 9 a.m. on Saturday.
In other news, these two are still attached at the hip.
You know what's funny? I'm not even sure this is week 12 of the year. Guess I should go check that out. Anyway, it's got to be *close* to week 12.
Doing a little catching up tonight! I think my new theme for each week this year will be My Favorite Photo Taken This Week. Because I'm creative like that.
Even with an extra day, February passed by in a blink. Happily, a new month means a new folder for photos which makes finding the ones I need a little easier.
This little guy supervised me making cookies yesterday. Very well, I might add - nearly all of the ingredients actually made it into the mixing bowl. Ella tasted the finished product and said they were divine. (Thanks, Fancy Nancy.)
Wes assured me he wasn't letting Henry nap on his chest. Just cuddling he says. Hm.
Making Henry smile is one of Ella's favorite things. At bedtime tonight, she was getting visibly upset that she could hear him fussing in his crib. I had checked on him several times and assured her that he was fine - he'd be falling asleep very soon. Still upset that he was fussing and I seemed to be okay with it, she told me, "Mommy, I love him more than you do." *chest clutch*
I have so many belly pictures taken in this mirror, I thought it might be fun to have one with the end result.
He loves smiling at the baby he sees.
Another off-theme week (which was supposed to be Leap). We'll call this one The Sleeve-Eater. Silly boy, you're not supposed to eat Nana's sweaters.
This photo needs some work, and I want to try it again with both of them (or one day with all of them?) but for now, Ella and I had some fun with the slow-speed timer. This was inspired by a post I read last year on CM - can anyone help me remember who's original idea this was? I'm sure lots of parents can relate to their kids running circles around them.
Here are two more B&W snaps from today. First up is the boys as they started their day this morning.
And this little guy has been doing a lot of "talking" lately.
Oh, this one's from last week. Ella loves her Henry...Henry's concerned expression cracks me up.
Pure White: A Series
We may or may not be doing a little pre-season training with Michael. Kiddie Kickers starts March 17. Watch out Winnona Park.
Three months in, the excitement of having a baby brother hasn't lost it's shine on the big kids.
A crazy work schedule and the most perpetually rainy winter we've ever had are really cramping my shooting lately. I'm sure that a nice, sunny day with nothing to do but play outside with the kids is in our near future. Can't wait.
Decided to go off-theme this week. And by "decided to," I mean, I didn't manage to get any photos that fit the weekly theme by a long shot. So here's my non-themed weekly submission.
This post has nothing to do with the Grammy's but since we're watching them now, it fits. Love my little goofballs. Check out the 'stick' Michael had to bring home from the playground.
Earlier that same day, our friend Freddy came over to play.
Yesterday morning, Nana, Henry and I got to watch Ella's ballet class.
And here are a few more from the ill-fated try for heart-themed photos of the kids.
Finally, this one is possibly my favorite from the week.
Hearts
For the most part, this attempt at a Valentine's Day-themed shot was an epic fail...but well, Happy Heart Week.
Cooking and I, we're old friends. It's a rare day that I follow a recipe to the letter, finding the gamble of substituting ingredients and cooking methods to be all part of the fun. My husband, however, finds my lax approach to writing out grocery lists, as a result of my laid-back cooking attitude, to be somewhat annoying. I'm working on that.
Baking and I, we are not such good friends. Measuring precisely, using room temperature butter and eggs (who in the heck, aside from Ina Garten, remembers to put the butter out hours ahead of time?), and actually setting the kitchen timer are all tasks that do not come easily to me. When I bake, I generally refer to the recipe every 11 to 14 seconds throughout the process. It's stressful.
So when I decided to morph my all-time favorite cookie into a lactation-friendly version, you must understand I was heading boldly into the great unknown. Having recently jumped back on the Weight Watchers bandwagon, post-baby Henry, I needed a guilt-free way to work chocolate into my diet once a day. Okay twice a day. And if I'm eating cookies that help me make more milk for my baby boy, that's the ticket this momma is buying Chocolate Land. For anyone else who is counting, these heavenly bites are worth three points each.
How do you know if these cookies are for you, too? Well, do you like dark chocolate? Do you like oatmeal cookies? Do you like spicy gingerbread? Do you enjoy eating something sinful under the guise of a health food?
Yes to all of the above? Print this blog post and head to Whole Foods.
[And no, eating these cookies will not make you lactate if you're not already doing so. They are perfectly delicious for children and grown men alike.]
Chewy Chocoloate-Oatmeal-Gingerbread Cookies*
*Adapted from Martha Stewart's (awesome kitchen staffer's) recipe and discovered through my girlfriend who gifts the regular version each holiday season to the delight of her friends and family.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons finely ground flax seed meal
7 ounces best-quality semisweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 tablespoons Brewer's Yeast
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (real ginger gives the cookies a great "bite"; use less or more to taste)
1/2 cup dark-brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
1 teaspoon baking soda
Directions
Line two baking sheets with parchment. Chop chocolate into 1/4-inch chunks; set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cocoa and Brewer's Yeast.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and grated ginger until whitened, about 4 minutes. Add brown sugar; beat until combined. Add molasses; beat until combined. Add flax seed meal mixture; beat until combined.
In a small bowl, dissolve baking soda in 1 1/2 teaspoons boiling water. Beat half of flour mixture into butter mixture. Beat in baking-soda mixture, then remaining half of flour mixture. Mix in chocolate and oats; turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Pat dough out to about 1 inch thick; seal with wrap; refrigerate until firm, 2 hours or more.
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Roll dough into 1 1/2- inch balls; roll in granulated sugar. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake until the surfaces crack slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 48 cookies.
ENJOY.
What did we do this past weekend? Well, personally, I engaged in a lot of great parenting (read: bribing) practices. We had a few projects to get knocked out and the big kids were really excited to help however they could. In exchange for a trip to Target's Dollar Spot...and some Skittles, of course.
In case you're curious, no, we don't typically brush hair before 3 p.m. on Saturdays or Sundays.
Henry aired some objections to my bribery options. They're not really working for him, he says.
The stakes got a little higher when I needed the kids to help out with a "selfie" photo challenge for a group I belong to online. I brought out the big guns: delaying nap time in exchange for going to Target right away.
To make a long story short, Michael ended up with a pair of light-up Star Wars shoes as a result of my weakness in the aisles of Target. And those who know me, know my loathing for cheesy, branded kids' gear. But I love my little guy more than my hatred for those shoes, and they do make him so darn happy.
I think they were a little tuckered out after all of their hard work.
In the Dark
Taking A Walk
A walk always ends up at the playground when it comes to these kiddos.
By design, we didn't have a whole lot going on this weekend. As it turns out, Mother Nature decided to push us even further into the realm of complete laziness by bringing in some really nasty weather. Why fight it? We did manage to all shower and dress each day. Those were major accomplishments, I'd say.
Speaking of dressing...here is where I found Michael, twenty minutes after telling him he couldn't come out of the bathroom until he had put his pants back on his cute little tushy.
Ella wanted to take some pictures with my camera and happily, Henry and I were willing to sit still for her. (Read: it was a great reason to ignore the loads of laundry that needed changing.) The camera weighs about 25 percent of what she does, but she handles it pretty well!