2 Month Appointment

It was a success.

Turtle is doing great. He is 13lbs 10oz (wow!), 22.5" long (although I suspect he might be a tad longer than that, but he is hard to straighten out), and his head is 15.5" around. The doctor is pleased with his progress, and that makes us happy. He had three vaccines and the rotovirus oral med today - like last time, he only cried when the plunger went down on the needle, and then he was fine.

Even better, no fever and no real reaction. The needle site on his right leg got a little warm and he seemed a bit uncomfortable so I did give him a dose of Tylenol and he was great for the rest of the day. He even took a good, solid nap and let me nap with him - usually by the time I get his leads on and get myself in bed, he's all awake and alert, but today, he cut me a break.

Dr. S is also ok with the pulmonologist's decision to leave Turtle on the monitor for another month. It's an added precaution, and there's no harm in that. However, he thinks Turtle is pretty much caught up from his prematurity, so it's all full speed ahead from here.

He had a lovely evening with his Daddy, too. After dinner, they played with his stuffed monkey. All was great, until Mr. Monkey offended him in some inexplicable way, and Turtle flung him over the back of the couch. See ya, Mr. Monkey.

I also had a glimpse of what's ahead for me as a SAHM. A directed me to this blog today. Talk about insane! But you know that I am already looking for the bento boxes the writer uses for her kids, and am figuring out who to petition to get a Trader Joe's around here. I'm going to have to polish up on my cookie cutter skills ;)

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The Bucket List

We watched this movie Sunday night, and OMG... we were both crying at the end. What a beautiful story.

Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman (two amazing actors), are both diagnosed with terminal cancer and set out to fulfill a "bucket list," the things they want to do before they "kick the bucket." It just really has some moments that break your heart, and other moments that really make you stop and think. DH thought it would be more of a comedy, but it was a little bit of everything. I think I'm going to buy the DVD - I could totally watch it regularly.

In the meantime, I started thinking about things I'd like to do before I pass. Hopefully, that's a long way off, but it's interesting to think about. I had lists for things I wanted to do before I turned 21 and before I turned 30, and I did ok with those, but let's see what I've come up with.

* Live to see my grandchild/children

* Travel the world - specifically Egypt, Tuscany, Greece, Bali, Tahiti, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, Amsterdam, Prague, St. Petersburg, Moscow.

* Restore my own Shelby

* Open a bakery

* Finish and maybe sell a screenplay and/or novel

* Meet those people I always wished I could meet
* Take my Mom to Alaska - it's her dream and I would love to see her enjoy it
* Attend a Superbowl (preferably with the Dolphins playing)
* swim with the dolphins

So far, this is what I have. Not too much, but enough to work with. :) I think it's interesting to write down those things you want to do in your lifetime and then try to accomplish them.

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Hmmm. Today wasn't awful.

And I am pleasantly surprised by that fact.



DH's friends showed up around lunchtime, and we had a really lovely day. We grilled out and enjoyed the view until the storms rolled in, and then we went to Panama Hattie's for dinner and to watch Matt play. The weather still wasn't great, so C and I drove home (we took two cars). She fed Turtle and he ate 7 oz in about 20 minutes, looked around and went right back to sleep. I had ordered Mad Money on PPV, but since he was out, I excused myself and put him to bed.










He slept for 5 hours last night after his 10pm bottle, which was great! He goes down very easily and hopefully, that trend will continue.



DH and M got home a few minutes ago and are downstairs. Funny how the boys are the ones gabbing away while the girls get some sleep.



We're going to go into the historic district tomorrow before they drive home. Turtle hasn't been there yet, and I think it will be a nice day out, provided the weather holds.

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Lots going on.

I had a great night on Wednesday, taking Turtle out to La Nop to meet up with some of my girlfriends from The Nest. It was wonderful. I definitely needed the break from home, and it was awesome seeing so many of the girls with and without their little ones. We, as a group, make some gorgeous babies.

Today, we unwittingly braved the weather to have lunch at the Marriott in Ponte Vedra. Wow - what a gorgeous hotel. There were turtles swimming in the water beneath the pool bar, where we were, and the landscaping was incredible. I was so mad that I didn't bring my camera - we could have had some beautiful pictures. Next time. DH really liked it there and so we'll be back, even if it is a bit of a drive.

We also had a visit from the exterminator. The spider situation was out of control. DH was doing a great job keeping the back patio mostly cleaned off, but I have killed 3 black widows in the last month, and found about 20 egg sacs on the front patio. I have been out there with my spider spray (yes, I have my own), but I still don't feel safe. God forbid the baby, or the pugs or one of us gets bitten. And even worse than black widows are those brown recluse spiders. They scare the bejeesus out of me. I don't know what they look like (I'm assuming brown and threatening), but the fact that they might be lurking out there is enough to keep me in the house. DH didn't help the situation by mentioning that there are scorpions up here, too. The day I see one is the day I'm packing and moving somewhere like Iceland. Where they don't have bugs or stinging critters.

After dinner, we watched 10,000 BC. Meh. I ususally like those kinds of movies, but I found myself kind of making fun of it - after all, these cavemen had some seriously good personal hygeine and fantastic teeth. They also had horses and handcuffs with locks and keys. Clearly, this flick was well researched. However, DH and I both sat together and watched it, with the dogs and Turtle. No laptops, no phones, no other distractions (so you can blame him for why Red Velvet Armadillo isn't updated tonight). Sunday night, we're going to get The Bucket List. That should be better.



Turtle's been doing great. He likes sitting more upright and he's definitely staying awake longer. He's learning to smile in response to us, too. DH watched him this afternoon so I could take a little nap, and he told me that Turtle smiled up at him and it made him cry. Awww. He really hasn't been spending as much time with Turtle as he could be, so he is now making a concerted effort to do the 6 and 10 feedings, as well as read a bedtime story. Turtle wasn't used to him, and would therefore cry a lot when DH had him. The extra time is rectifying that situation.



Turtle has also discovered the "baby in the mirror" and is much more interested in his toys. It's so cool to see him interacting with things around him, and show such amazement at his toys. I love watching how every day he learns something new. He also thinks blankets taste good.











Tomorrow, DH's friend and his wife are coming to visit for a few days. I kind of would love a weekend of nothingness, but it's not to be. Hopefully, the weather will be nice and we'll get to do the things the boys were planning. Never thought I'd say this, but I'm sorta kinda looking forward to Monday. :)

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Doctor Update Update: A Little Bummed

Yeah.

So the pulmonologist got back to us today after reading the second report. It seems that Turtle had one brady and two apneas in the fourteen days from May 22. End result? He's staying on the monitor for another month.

Super.

I feel like I should be doing something, but there's nothing I can do. It's frustrating. I know it's not my fault, but it's so super-hard to deal with the fact that I can't fix this. I'm too type-A to handle that.

I got out out today to go visit K&A at the hospital - K gave birth to McLovin on June 23, and it was wonderful to see Turtle's new buddy. McLovin is a gorgeous baby (HUGE!) and we are so happy for them. It's amazing how many new little ones are joining us.

I got some cleaning done today, hoping that I would be able to take Turtle out for a walk tonight. The storms are rolling in, of course, and so it's looking like that's not going to happen. I really, really look forward to that outside time. I get to turn up my ipod and sing quietly to myself. It's really nice to get to do that.

OH, and here's something interesting: I overheard DH on the phone with his dad today and he was telling him how he and I had discussed getting away for a break in August. This is news to me! Apparently, our break would entail going back to visit my ILs (we're going to be there at the end of July for FIL's 75th birthday). Apparently, since I've never been to Tampa, that's where we should go. So glad I was consulted in all this.

And, oh, can't forget this. Here's what Turtle really thinks of me. I was trying to take pictures of him "discovering" his hand and his thumb. Apparently, I was totally interrupting his mission and he flipped me the bird. He's so grounded.

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Like the Energizer Bunny...

I keep going and going!

Up at 3 again today. Surprisingly, I wasn't as cranky this morning. I just got up and got going. What else is there to do?



Molly had a great night - she's not showing any signs of pain, thank God. She jumps on and off the couch and the bed, and is fine walking around. We have to put a warm washcloth on the sore spot every few hours, and she is flat-out refusing to take her antibiotics. DH tried to hide it in scrambled eggs, then american cheese, then melon, and then broke down and made a cheese omelette for her, but she just turned up her nose. I tried the pill with peanut butter, and still nothing. I got her to take it finally, but not without a fight. At least she's feeling better.



My first order of business this morning was to organize the shelves in the garage. DH got some awesome new units, and I went through some old boxes and tried to condense everything. While our garage isn't what you would call a disaster zone, it was a bit cluttered. Now, it's looking nice and tidy. In a few months, I'm sure I'll be out there again, condensing more, but it was certainly a good start.





After that, I mopped and did the windows. Then it was off for errands. I had planned a big baking day and needed some new tools, and I also had to replace my sunglasses. While I was gone, I figured I would be nice and hit up Publix for the week's groceries. It felt really good to get so much done so quickly.

I also treated myself to a little something at Michael's: this little cupcake decorating kit. It was only $4 or $5.99, and it has the tip that you can use to inject the cupcakes with filling. To me, that's just about the coolest thing ever. I can't wait to give it a shot!





In the meantime, I made whoopie pies. It was my first time using a candy thermometer, and I was really nervous about messing up the frosting, but it was surprisingly easy. Now that I have it, I can use it for fudge and all sorts of yummy stuff. DH is afraid - especially since I told him today that I think I might need a second KA stand mixer...



Also, we got Cloverfield on PPV tonight. We DVRd it so I'll watch it for real tomorrow, but what I saw was kind of cool. I really liked the whole handheld camcorder effect of it. It made for a totally different viewing experience. It was very slice of life. You know, if your life involved being in NYC when random monsters attacked. I'm glad I finally got to see it.

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Stick a fork in me.

I'm done. For real. I surrender. Do you see that? Yep, it's the white flag on the mast. Too bad Captain Jack Sparrow isn't there, staring up at it.

I really am absolutely shot.

The night started out great. Better than great. Everyone was happy, Turtle was sleeping well... things were fantastic. DH was going to get up early to take the dogs to the vet for their spa day, and then I was going to a shower with Turtle. Easy peasy.

And then at 2:48am, the monitor went off. I swear, when we are done with this thing, I am taking it out back and going Office Space on it. If I can find a bat. But I digress. I fix everything, lay down, close my eyes, repeat the process a few times over the next hour, and then Molly shifted positions in bed.

Which is when I realized there was a wet spot. (For those of you who know about cat-pee girl, get the thought right out of your head. IF my dog had that kind of accident in my bed, I would damn well know it instantly and I would certainly not lay it for longer than, I don't know, never.)

It was blood.

Apparently, Molly is one of those dogs that is unable to express her own anal glands. We called the emergency vet and they said she probably ruptured one of her glands and that we were ok to wait til 7:30 as long as she didn't have blood in her stool. Which she hasn't. She seemed more upset by the fact that we used one of Turtle's size 1 diapers on her than she was by the actual rupture, so we all went back to sleep.

For me, that meant 45 minutes, but the time I changed the sheets and got everything in the washer.

Turtle didn't sleep long after DH left for the vet with the dogs, so I got up, and tried to get things done. After a very happy hour in his swing, he decided that he wanted to be worn. And you know what? If that's the way I'm getting things done in this house, then I will wear him as long as he wants.



DH made a swing by Home Depot for water sealer for our fence, and ended up getting new shelving for our garage and another plant for our front patio. In the meantime the vet called: Molly had, in fact, ruptured an anal gland. They were going to have to sedate her, clean the wound and disinfect everything, but she would be ok. Great. I also realized that I didn't send out my Mom's birthday card (her big day is tomorrow - way to go, Daughter of the Year).

I even managed to get a shower and blow-dry my hair while Turtle napped. Amazingly, I had enough time to polish my toes. We had a giant storm crop up the second DH finished the fence, so hopefully his efforts weren't wasted. With the bad weather, we decided that I would leave Turtle home with him, just as soon as he got the dogs. I sat down to feed the baby, while he showered and headed to the vet. I was hoping to leave at 2.

At 2:25, he came home. All he could say was "Molly's in bad shape." She was still sedated, in a plastic collar, and extremely pissed. He had to keep all the other dogs away from her and as soon as he said that, Turtle started crying. I called the guest of honor and told her I wouldn't be able to make it.

And the rest of the day has been pretty much a blur. I did get to take a 45 minute nap with Molly (which brings me up to about 6 hours total over the past two days), and DH claims that Turtle cried the whole time (I find it amazing that ten minutes after I leave a room, he loses his mind). Our neighbor dropped off a little gift for Turtle, which was so super sweet. Molly is getting the royal treatment, with scrambled eggs for dinner, served to her on her pillow. Turtle is in the sling again, sound asleep. My back is killing me and DH is passed out on the couch. Oh, and my sunglasses broke.



I know it could always be worse, but I'm so frustrated. I can't get out of the house, short of stroller walks and speedy trips to Publix (my least favorite place in the world). I just have to take a deep breath and pray that tomorow will be a better day. I already told DH that I'm running out to get a new pair of sunglasses and a candy thermometer so I can make whoopie pies this week. He's just going to have to manage.


This is what a baby who hasn't slept all day looks like, when he passes out of sheer exhaustion on Daddy's shoulder.

Oh, and we have some milestones: Turtle can hold his head up for about 15-20 seconds and he's startling (Nancy, you were right - he's hitting himself in the face and totally driving himself nuts). Oh, and he's even more cute today than he was yesterday. Does that count? :)

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Is it bedtime yet?

I've been up since 3am.

Because my little tricky boy decided it would be somuchfun(!) to continuously tangle with his leads, thereby causing the monitor to go off a total of NINE times. Ordinarily, I could really just pass them off as false alarms, ha ha, back to bed, etc. But considering our appointment with the pulmonologist was at 8:30 this morning, and we were supposed to be finding out if he could come off the monitor, the thought of them seeing nine alarms in a 3 hour period was disheartening to say the least.

It was a challenging morning. DH forgot to set his alarm, Oscar got sick, the GPS went haywire. By the time we pulled out of Starbucks, my nerves were absolutely raw. I hated going to the apnea clinic - it was right down the street from the hospital, and brought back such awful memories. Ugh.

However, the appointment went great. Turtle is a whopping 12.62 pounds and 21.5" (although he doesn't like to be measured so I think we'll see that he's longer when he has his 2 month appointment on Monday). His head is 16", which is also a jump of 2". Everything is totally heading in the right direction.

The doctor was great. She reviewed everything and told us that it seems like his bradys have totally cleared themselves up. The second monitor download was not delivered to her yet (was coming today), so she asked us to keep him on the monitor at night for just a few more days (probably through the weekend). If the analysis is anything like the first download, there is no reason for him to stay on it. And that would really be the best news ever.

DH is off golfing (yay!), so Turtle and I had a very nice afternoon. We even threw in a tiny nap. Standard for him; absolute heaven for me.

I'm looking forward to getting to bed early tonight. The pugs have an appointment at the vet for baths and manicures and DH is going to start water sealing our fence. Big weekend for everyone, it seems!

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They can't all be awesome days

Turtle had an absolutely outstanding night. He ate and slept without any issues, whatsoever.



Which is why it was so infuriating when I put him down after his 6 o'clock bottle, curled back up in bed, and was treated to the sound of a jackhammer pounding away outside my window. Further investigation showed that workmen were tearing up random bits of the curb in even more random locations around our cul-de-sac, and repouring the cement. At 7:45 in the morning.



So I get myself up and going, since I am unable to sleep through the sound of cement breaking, and thought I would clear up our front patio. In doing so, I found a black widow in the garage. I unloaded about half a can of spider poison on it, and then squished it. Just in case. So motivated, I took a broom and pulled down every web, egg sac, cocoon and bug-related thing from the eaves and inside of our patio.



DH was a little antsy today so I suggested we go to lunch. We're getting ready to go when he discovers that the garage door opener is out of whack. He spends about an hour in the garage (at which point, lunch is futile, because Turtle will be waking up to eat soon), to no avail. Ugh.



J helped him fix the garage tonight, and the best part of that hookup is that they're going golfing tomorrow after Turtle's pulmonology appointment. Thank GOD. I've been trying to get him out of the house for weeks. Hopefully, the appointment goes well and we can all get some rest tomorrow.



Oh, yeah, and Bentley decided today was a good day to start chewing rocks. Fantastic.



Some funny pug pics from today.

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Doctor Update: All Clear

Today was my momentous post-partum appointment. I was able to delay it til 7 weeks, but no longer.

I'm almost down to my pre-pregnancy weight, my blood pressure was a stunning 110/68 (thank god they didn't take it yesterday - I'm sure it would have been through the roof), and -sit down for this - my iron was 13.2! Who would have guessed?

Dr. G gave me a prescription for a NuvaRing and some information on IUDs. I am done having children, and I'll definitely consider a tubal ligation, but not right now. Ideally, I would love for DH to have a vasectomy, but he's not ready. I hate the pill, refuse to do depo and have heard bad things about the patch. So it's the ring or the IUD. Dr. G. told me to give it three months and then decide what I want to do. Sounds like a plan.

In the meantime, DH is thrilled that I have been cleared to "resume all normal activity." Little does he know I have plans to build a barbed wire fort around my half of the bed. Sadly, the electric fence was out of my budget, so this will have to do.

I played around with my camera today. I saw a beautiful photo on a birth annoucement sample and wanted to try to replicate it. I don't think I did such a bad job.

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So. Tired.

Of course, I'm so tired I can't even sleep, so that's really fantastic.

It was a bit of a difficult day. Turtle really couldn't get settled and didn't nap very much. He even stayed wide awake the entire time we were on our walk, which totally foiled my whole plot to wear him out. Ugh. DH thinks he has colic (which is what he says any time our son acts a little off or out of the norm) and my Mom says he's just doing what babies do. Once we get through the pulmonologist appointment on Friday and his 2 month appointment on Monday, we're going to need to assess our routines and start getting him regulated. While he's on a pretty good schedule, we've kind of been playing everything by ear, but I want to start really establishing bedtime and nighttime sleeping, so I have to focus on that.

Tomorrow is my 6 week post partum exam. Good. Times. I have no desire to go, especially since I have to go to a different office. I also don't want to get weighed, considering I consumed quite a bit of cake batter today (don't judge me). But I guess since I've actually procrastinated til my seventh week, I might as well get it over with. The worst that can happen is they tell me not to exercise. Like I need any encouragement on that front. :)

The bright spot in my day? The proofs of our family pics. I was so happy - these are some of my favorites that we'll be ordering.

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Announcing: Red Velvet Armadillo

Since I've been doing so much in the kitchen, I decided to branch out into a new blog, completely dedicated to my kitchen adventures. Red Velvet Armadillo is my new brain child, and I'm hoping it will be a raging success.

This blog will continue as it began, following the trials and tribulations of Turtle, the pugs and the much-beloved Fun Burglar, with some scrapbooking thrown in to keep it interesting. Please feel free to frequent both blogs, and enjoy!

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Cous Cous Salad with Chicken & Nectarines

Thanks to Nancy for this delicious recipe. I played around with it a little bit, but DH and I both agreed that it's a keeper for the future.

1 cup instant cous cous
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 cup finely chopped parsley leaves (approx. 6 sprigs)
6 tbsps olive oil
2 spicy grilled chicken breasts
3 fresh nectarines, cut into bite sized chunks
2 small shallots, thinly sliced rings
3/4 cup of pistachio nuts, shelled
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Place cous cous in a medium bown. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil and stir in the cinnamon, cumin, salt, and pepper. Pour mixture over cous cous. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff with a fork. Stir in the parsely and 2 tbsps of the olive oil. Set aside. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and place in a large bowl. Add the nectarines and shallots. Drizzle with vinegar and the remaining olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to tatse. Mix in cous cous. Add pistachios just before eating.

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DH's First Father's Day

And according to him, it was wonderful.

He didn't get to sleep in and he had to help me with his breakfast (I had never poached an egg before and didn't want to screw it up), but other than that: he got a nap, some cool gifts, watched Gladiator on the couch and went out with me and Turtle for a delicious Italian dinner.

The big gift was his new GPS: the Garmin c550. We got a great deal on it on Overstock.com and he loves it. It seemed like it was really easy to set up (based on the lack of cursing and the fact that it works), and even I can admit that it's pretty dang cool. We used it to get to dinner last night, just to see what it would do. My favorite part is that if you go a way different than it tells you, it automatically reconfigures and works with what you're doing. There are also a bunch of bluetooth and mp3 features on it, but I haven't played yet.

Probably the most fun in my day was getting Turtle dressed up for his night out. He just looked so cute, especially with his itty-bitty Chucks. I'll be honest, I have more fun getting him dressed than I do myself.

He was very good during dinner, but he did have a rough night - he kept DH up from 12:30-4 or so. He just hasn't been able to get comfortable and today, he had a bit of an upset tummy. The doctor had us come pick up some lactose-free formula, which should be easier to digest for him, and he's FINALLY getting some sleep. I hate not being able to know exactly what's wrong, so I just snuggle him as much as I can, and hope it helps.

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Eggs Bagel-dict

For DH's first Father's Day, I wanted to make him a very special breakfast, since we didn't get to make a brunch reservation. His favorite is Eggs Benedict. Well, we were missing some key ingredients, so I made my own version, which he swears was the best he's had, seeing as how he prefers bagels to english muffins and regular bacon to canadian bacon. I won't touch this particular dish, but it looked good.

Hollandaise Sauce

3 egg yolks

salt & pepper

1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 sticks unsalted butter, clarified

Hot water, to thin sauce

In a blender combine yolks, pepper and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.

In a small saucepan heat the clarified butter until bubbling hot.

Cover the blender and blend the yolk mixture on high speed for several seconds. Either remove center cap of blender lid or carefully remove lid with blender still running. Pour hot butter in a thin stream into blending egg mixture. As sauce thickens add a tablespoon of hot water at a time to help prevent the sauce from thickening too much. Taste the sauce and adjust with with lemon juice, salt and pepper, as needed.

Eggs Bagel-dict (directions per serving)

bagel, split & toasted

bacon (baked at 400 for 12 minutes on each side, until crispy)

2 eggs (poached - crack eggs into a pan of barely simmering water)

chives

hollandaise sauce

Set up bagel on plate. Place strips of bacon on each half of bagel.

Gently spoon poached eggs on to each side of the bagel.

Pour hollandaise sauce over the eggs and garnish with chives. Serve warm.

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More visitors and new people.

N & M came for dinner last night. N was so in love with Turtle and it was so great to see her snuggling him and loving on him. I'm only sorry that they couldn't stay longer. I miss spending time with them.

I let DH sleep in a bit this morning and got up early to take care of laundry and bathtime. When he got up, I ran some errands - I had to get him another little thing for Father's Day, a shower gift for my friend and I wanted a few sundresses. It's so hot outside and I refuse to wear shorts, so all I have really are jeans. I have to dig through some boxes and find some of my old skirts, too.

Tonight, our street had a block party at the next cul-de-sac over. It was pretty fun. There was a ton of food - a few people dragged their grills down into the street and everyone brought something (pasta salad, fruit, dessert, etc). We met some nice people and DH is planning to do something similar by our house for 4th of July. We'll see how that goes.

I came home a little earlier to get Turtle settled for bed. Lucky for me, Rudy (the greatest sports movie of all time) was on, so we watched that while I was putting him to bed. I took my time explaining to him why mommy cries every time she sees it, and I think he understood. DH was quick to turn on the Canes game, and he's all irritated now that they lost to Georgia. It was pretty ugly.

We're going to have kind of a quiet Father's Day. We didn't have plans to go out and today he told me he wanted brunch. Of course, you can't get a reservation anywhere, since it's the day before, so I promised I would try to make Eggs Benedict for him in the morning. I've never done it,and I don't eat it so I have no idea how it should even taste, but how hard can it be? I'll be sure to post how it turns out. For dinner, we're going for Italian.

I didn't really get a nap today, so I hope to have a restful day tomorrow. We'll see.

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Chocolate Mint Chip-cakes

I cheated and used a packaged cake mix, but the end result is yummy.

1 box devil's food cake mix (3 eggs, 1/2 cup oil, 1 1/3 cup water)

1 tsp mint extract

1 bag mini chocolate chips (3/4 for cupcakes, 1/4 for garnish)

buttercream frosting

Preheat oven according to directions (325F). Prepare pans with nonstick spray.

Prepare cake mix according to directions. Add mint extract with wet ingredients. Gently fold chips into batter. Fill cupcake spaces 2/3 of the way with batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes and then on serving platter Cool completely before decorating.

Buttercream Frosting

1 cup unsalted butter

3 cups confectioner's sugar

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

green food coloring

Beat ingredients until smooth. Add food coloring to get desired tint.

Decorate cupcakes with frosting and 1/4 bag mini chips.

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Poor baby

It was a fussy, fussy day.

Pretty much the only way Turtle would settle down is if one of us held him. My arm is so sore. We're guessing it's probably gas, and I think he seems to have slept it off. I brewed some fennel tea for him, just in case - if his fussiness crops up again, we'll give it a shot.

He also seemed happy chilling with Daddy.

While at the store, I took advantage of the Duncan Heinz 2-for-1 sale. Tomorrow, I'm going to make mint chocolate chip cupcakes with homemade buttercream. Yum. I can't wait to see how they turn out. I'm going to try piping the icing again - I feel more comfortable with it.

I also played around with my camera today. We have these gorgeous roses outside and this morning, they were covered with this fabulous dew. I just put the macro setting on the Rebel and started snapping away. The photos came out gorgeous, if I do say so myself.

And last but not least, DH made pizza for dinner tonight. I brought home tomatoes and fresh basil and when Turtle and I got home, we had this masterpiece waiting for us. I won't lie - we use the Publix dough, but it looked so pretty that I told him I was going to take pictures and brag about him online.

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Sleeping Through the Night

FINALLY, I got a solid 6 hours of sleep. It was nothing short of a miracle! Hallelujah.

Granted, I woke up at 5:15 am, but hey, that's ok. I had energy and felt like less of a zombie. Good times.

It was a busy, busy day. I lounged about til about 7:30, just playing online, and then I got started. I straightened up downstairs, ran to Publix to get new supplies for my cupcakes, made and decorated them, played with Turtle and waited for Jaime to get here.

I really hope the photos come out well. Turtle was a wee bit stubborn about the whole thing - he was sleeping before she arrived, and then the minute we started messing with him, he got mad. :( I think we got some good stuff, but I'll have to wait for the proofs.

My friend K showed up a few hours later. It was nice to just sit and chat. Bentley was being a bit of a brat to her, so that was a little stressful, but we had a lovely dinner and Turtle loved sitting in her lap. I'll post some of those pics tomorrow - super cute. I hated to say goodbye.

The bad news is that DH is not getting the HD receiver in the house. Apparently, the inital receiver was put in incorrectly by Directv and they want to charge $50/hour to fix it/install the HD one. He's so frustrated and fed up with the whole thing, that he told them to forget it. I'll give him two weeks before he starts calling supervisors to fight it. We've made it this far without it, and quite honestly, I don't see the big deal anyway. Wahtever, it's his toy. He'll figure it out.

And one more thing. We got the final bill for Turtle's NICU stay. We were both way high in our guesstimations. I had thought $60-70K, while he had thought somewhere in the $100Ks. The real grand total? $29K. Thank god for our insurance, that's for sure.

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Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Thanks to my friend, N, I was inspired to try these out at home. The end result? So. Good. And cute too!

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

18 tsp pink sugar (mix red food coloring into granulated sugar)

1 package white cake mix (3 egg whites, 1/3 cup oil)

water (amount based on cake instructions)

3/4 cup thawed frozen pink lemonade concentrate

red food coloring (2-3 drops)

buttercream frosting (recipe below)

18 raspberries for garnish

1 Preheat oven 350°F

2 Spray pan with vegetable pan spray; sprinkle 1 teaspoon colored sugar into each cupcake-space in the pan.

3 Add water to pink lemonade mix to total amount of water called for on cake mix package directions.

4 Follow cake mix package directions to prepare cake. Add red food coloring to make batter desired shade of pink.

5 Pour into prepared pan.

6 Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

7 Cool 10 minutes in pan on rack; remove and cool completely before decorating.

Buttercream Frosting

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

3 cups powdered sugar

pinch of salt

Beat ingredients in a blender until smooth.

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Looong Day.

A call to the pediewatrician this morning confirmed it: Turtle can eat more. Dr. V said that since he's in the 75th percentile for his weight and height, it's ok to increase his feedings. He's not overweight and he's not headed in that direction, so we're working on the premise of "if he's hungry, feed him what he wants." This means that we had another adjustment to the routine, and now all of us are all messed up. :)

I was hoping he would be in good shape to go out to a meeting of our local book club tonight and meet some of my friends who have been dying to see him, and he did well for a little bit, sticking out his tongue and making his cute faces, but he was just overtired and overstimulated, and as a result, quite uncomfortable. We bowed out a little early, and after a big bottle, he finally pooped out on my shoulder. Poor little guy.

The bad news is that I tried to make some pink lemonade cupcakes (courtesy of my friend, N's inspiration). Well, I was so out of it that I totally messed up the recipe and had to dump it all. What a waste, and I'm so disappointed. I was looking forward to them, and I don't know if I'll have a chance to get more ingredients and make them tomorrow. Maybe Thursday.

I'm a littele nervous about our photo session tomorrow. I hope Turtle gets some good sleep so he's in his usual sweet mood. I also hope that Jaime finds some great opps around our house. Fingers crossed!

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Hungry boy

I'm going to guess we hit a small growth spurt today, because Turtle's appetite went all out of whack.

He usually takes 5oz 8 times a day (12/4/8), but yesterday, he just didn't seem super interested. Well, he woke up at 6:15 and he was not happy. DH changed his diaper and that settled him down - he went back to sleep until about 7:30 and then... well, I've never seen this child suck a bottle down like he did. When he was done and DH took the bottle away, Turtle burst into tears. He's never cried for more, but that's what he was doing, so I pulled out a ready-made 2oz bottle and wouldn't you know - he took it all?

And then, he slept from about 10:45 until 2. He was so drowsy while he was playing and when I put him down, he pretty much conked right out. And I was able to get in a quick nap since his early morning wake-up call had left me at a whopping 2 hours of sleep.

He really didn't nap too much today either, and we went for an hour long walk before getting him changed for bed, so hopefully the fresh air will work its magic. And DH opted to take the 2am, so as soon as I'm done with this blog, I get to sleep til 5:30! It's the little things.

We'll see where this takes us. His 2 month appointment is on the 31st, so I'm wondering where we'll be at as far as feedings are concerned. I don't want to rush anything with him, and it's just too early to cut him down to four feedings, so right now, the plan is to watch his appetite and adjust accordingly.

DH had a bit of a disappointment today - he had negotiated a free HD receiver from our satellite provider and it was supposed to be installed today (MY disappointment came in the fact that I thought he was going to have to do it himself). However, the tech never showed up. On the plus side, the provider has an on-time guarantee, so we get a $100 credit towards our bill. Pretty nice. I am also doubtful that I am going to notice much difference in the HD vs nonHD, but if it makes him happy, then what can I do?

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Shrimp with Orzo & Feta

In a bowl, whisk together the following:

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp oregano

salt & pepper

Add 1/2 lb medium shrimp to the mixture. Coat well and chill for 3 hours.

In a blender, combine the following:

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

3 tbsp parsley

1 tsp oregano

1/4 cup olive oil

black pepper

Pulse until a dressing is formed.

In a pan, saute shrimp with 1 cup fresh green beans.

Cook 1/2 lb orzo according to directions and drain well.

Toss orzo with dressing, 3 oz crumbled feta cheese, and 3 chopped scallions. Add shrimp and green beans to the top. Serve warm.

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Chicken & ChickPea Salad

I found this recipe in The Nest magazine and modified it for our tastes. Next time, I think I'll add a little vinegar to give it an extra kick.

2-3 cloves minced garlic
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp curry
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/2 cup white wine
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 tomatoes, diced
cucumber, diced
1 tsp curry power
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
2 scallions, chopped
3 tbsp minced red onion
1 tbsp butter

1. Combine wine, garlic, ginger, cumin, curry, salt, and red pepper. Pour marinade over chicken and chill for 2-4 hours.

2. Combine remaining ingredients (except butter) in a serving bowl and chill.

3. Bake chicken at 375 in a glass dish with butter for 30 minutes. Slice and arrange over salad.

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Big Week Coming Up

And I mean HUGE.

First of all, I have really gotten a lot of my motivation back and I really feel in the swing of things. I am taking great pleasure in cooking and even in plating new recipes and so mealtime has gotten a hell of a lot more interesting. I don't think I've made a pasta/pink sauce (our old staple) since... before Turtle was born. I also want to start baking again. Since I'm walking (and DH is making the effort to come with me), it would be nice to try out my skills on some new cupcake creations. Yum.

We had a bit of a milestone today. Turtle gave me a smile. Now, it could still be gas, but he's been working on this for a couple of weeks now, and I think today, he got the hang of it. Check it out - I believe it's the real thing! It kind of melted my icy heart.

And a new toy was introduced: I call it the Ocean Activity Playmat of Doom. This thing is hardcore. There are toys and links (new mommies: these links are absolutely essential to existence) and mirrors and lights and music, oh my! I was kind of worried that Turtle would be overstimulated by all the bells & whistles (because Mommy sure was), but as usual, he took it all in and after a momentary look of "what the heck, mom?", settled right in.

Apparently, the playmat is also a place for him to practice his kung fu fighting, shown here.

Now, for the fun. Wednesday, we have our "newborn photo shoot." It's not really newborn anymore, due to all the complications, but Jaime Smith is coming to the house to shoot us as a family, and I am stoked. I have this crazy obsession with pro photos, for some reason. I think I'm getting good with taking my own (I attribute it all to the new camera), but there's just something about a pro pic that gets me.

In the afternoon, one of my best friends is flying in on business. She is going to spend the night in the city so she can visit on Wednesday afternoon. It's going to be great. And just when you thought it couldn't get any better, my other best friend and her boyfriend are driving up this weekend for a family function and they'll be coming here, too! We have a block party on Saturday, but whatever. I am just so delighted that these women, who are like my sisters, will be here to meet Turtle. Of course, there will be tons o' pics of their visits, later in the week. :)

Wish me luck getting everything done!

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Rum Chicken

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

2/3 cup dark rum

dash of Grand Marnier

1/3 cup orange juice

3 tbsp worcestshire sauce

6-7 cloves minced garlic

1 tbsp orange zest

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 piece grated ginger (1 tsp powder)

salt & pepper to taste

Whisk together everything but the chicken. Submerge chicken breast and marinate in the fridge for 1-4 hours. Grill on medium-high heat to desired temperature and serve garnished with orange slices.

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Out and about

I admit, today got off to a very, very bad start. I guess everyone has a breaking point, and I hit mine. I really wish it didn't have to come at 5 in the morning, but hey, that's part of the fun, right?

Needless to say, we did not get up at the crack of dawn to make it to the blueberry festival. In fact, as we were attempting to leave FOR the festival, K texted me to tell me not to bother - that it was scorching hot and small and not worth the trip.

What DID happen this morning was DH turned into a rockstar. When Turtle's heart monitor went off for the 3rd time between 5 and 7, he bolted up, told me to lay back down and ... well, I don't know what he did but I woke up at 9:15, with only Molly in bed. Somehow, he had gotten Turtle AND Oscar (who is notorious for pouncing on me in the morning) downstairs, Turtle was dressed(check out the outfit), fed, changed and snoozing away in his PNP. Bentley & Oscar had been fed and were playing outside, and everyone was in a lovely mood. It was honestly one of the best mornings I can remember.

I sent DH out to bet the Belmont (he loves betting the Triple Crown races and holy cow, can you believe that Big Brown came in last? Wow!), and got me and the baby ready to leave. Of course, our plans changed a bit, so we decided to head over to SJTC for lunch and some fresh air. It was really nice, and DH insisted on pushing his stroller the entire time. So cute. We had lunch at Mitchell's Fish Market and Turtle was so well-behaved. We topped off our meal with shakes from Kilwin's - how can you go wrong? Best of all, we got a picture of Turtle by the turtle pond. Too cute!

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