This Week in Mommyhood

If I had to pick one word to describe the past few weeks it would be overwhelmed. I'm going through a period of feeling overwhelmed and feeling like there is too much to do and not enough time. It all started when I forgot about a test and only had about an hour to properly study for it. Then, Cati with her toddler coping skills called the babysitter "ugly." I felt like a huge fail; I sucked at school and I sucked at being a mom. I have tried my hardest to tell Cati that people are not ugly, instead they do ugly things and she still called someone ugly. Then, I started internalizing all the crankiness in the house and felt that it was all because of me and not giving the girls enough attention. It was a whole set of issues that led to me deciding that I need to work harder at taking a day off from everything so that I could just be with the girls.

Here are Elina's fun developments over the last two weeks:

Baby Crawler. Gone are the days of the drag-and-crawl. Elina is full-on crawl mode and girl gets around. It still strikes me as weird having two mobile kids in the house. When did Elina get big enough for crawling? The best part of the crawling is that now Elina comes to me when she wants cuddles and comfort. I also love to see her follow me around the house and the big smile she gives when she's reached me.

Pulling Up. Of course, crawling isn't enough for Elina and she has begun to pull up. She will try to pull up on everything which means there have been lots of extra tears around here as things fall when they can't handle her weight. Between the crawling and this I am back in paranoid mommy mode with all the stairs in our house.

Bye Bye Bottle. Elina has dropped to four bottles a day, four hours apart. I dropped the bottle because she was becoming really fussy with her bottles and wouldn't finish whole bottles. So in an effort to save milk and make feeding time a little more enjoyable, I decided to drop one of her bottles. I tried increasing her intake in the four bottles to make up for the lost bottle but she seems perfectly content with drinking her 5-ounce bottles.

Toothy. One of Elina's top teeth came in. Thank God for that too because I was starting to wonder who switched out my sweet, mellow baby for the cranky one that's been in our house this week.

Here are Cati's fun developments over the last two weeks:

Still Adjusting. Cati is still adjusting to school. I did not expect that, four weeks in, Cati would still be crying each morning at drop off. Luckily, she gets over it quickly and seems to enjoy herself but it still makes the mornings stressful because I know the car ride will be filled with "I don't want to go to school" and separation will be marked by crying. What makes things even harder for me is picking her up from school and having her tell me she cried because I left her.

Molars! Cati is the slowest teether on the planet. Her two bottom molars finally broke through after weeks of us being able to see them under the gum.

Emotions. Proud mommy moment here...Cati is able to label some of her emotions! I work hard on naming emotions so that Cati can "use her words" instead of reacting physically. Well, one day Elina took one of Cati's toys and instead of yanking the toy back or pushing Elina away from the toy she said (in Spanish), "Mami, I'm mad because Elina took my toy."

The girls are growing and developing and it's simply been hard for me to keep up. I just hope things change a little bit or that I at least find a way to let go some more so that I can feel a little more in control of things around here.

Dulce de Leche Chocolate Chip Cookies

After I made dulce de leche at home I realized I had nothing to do with it other than eat it straight. I went in search for dulce de leche recipes and came across this recipe that made me stop looking. I cannot resist a chocolate chip cookie and I promise if you make these you won't be able to resist either. The dulce de leche gives the cookies another layer of salty and sweet. Plus, the cookie itself so great that you can make it without the dulce de leche and still enjoy.

Dulce de Leche Chocolate Chip Cookies
Source: My Madison Bistro
http://mymadisonbistro.com/archives/dulce-de-leche-chocolate-chip-cookies

8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can dulce de leche (I used about half a cup)

Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Line baking sheet with parchment.

In medium bowl, cream butter and sugars until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the egg yolk, stir until incorporated. Add vanilla, stir to combine.

In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the sugar mixture and stir until just a few streaks of flour remain. Add chocolate chips, fold to combine.

Divide the dough into 12 balls. Flatten each ball and spoon a small amount of dulce de leche in the center. Wrap dough around the caramel to reform a ball and seal the edges. Repeat with remaining dough.

Bake 9-13 minutes and cool slightly on pan.

This Weekend

I haven't been this excited about a weekend in a long time. Usually I look forward to the weekends because it means Alex will be around and I'll get an extra set of hands with the girls. This weekend, however, I'm excited for entirely different reasons.

First, a certain someone is going to pop and we all get to meet the newest member of the family. I can't believe I'm going to be meeting my niece this weekend. My sister told me she was pregnant the day after Elina was born so I have been anticipating her due date for multiple reasons: 1) I get to meet, hold, and cuddle with a new baby; 2) I get to experience a baby as an aunt instead of a mother; and 3) it means I survived seven whole months with Elina! While Elina was growing from newborn to baby my sister's baby was growing from cells to newborn. So amazing.

Second, I'm participating in my first 5K. I am so excited about this. I've been diligently exercising and running for close to a month and this weekend I'm doing something to officially prove how hard I have been working.

The best part is that I get to run with my two biggest supporters. My girls are part of the reason I have been so strict with myself about exercising; I want them to grow up with the idea that exercise is something that is a normal part of life, something organic and not something to be done because of peer or societal pressure. I want them to be healthy and comfortable in their own bodies. My work with this is already paying off because Cati loves to exercise with me (butt kicks and jumping jacks are her favorites), she asks to exercise daily, and she especially loves to do stretching exercises.

My goal is to do one fitness event a month. This month it's the Hyundai Hope on Wheels Miami Children's Hospital 5K. Next month it will be The Color Run. My ultimate goal is to train and participate in Disney's Princess Half Marathon in February.

So this weekend: Pure Awesomeness.

Gnocchi Bake

Alex found this recipe one day when we had no clue what to have for dinner. No meat was taken out to thaw and we needed to find something to make quick or risk a cranky toddler. As soon as Alex showed me this recipe I went to work and ended up throwing ham, pepperoni, and salami into our pasta. For such an easy meal it was really good.

Gnocchi Bake
Source: Andrea_D on Allrecipes.com

1 (18 ounce) package frozen or fresh gnocchi
1 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 (14 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add gnocchi, and cook until tender, 5 to 8 minutes.
Meanwhile, crumble the sausage into a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir until evenly browned. Drain grease, and stir in the spaghetti sauce. Remove from heat, and carefully mix in the cooked gnocchi and half of the mozzarella cheese. Transfer to a casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly.

Some of Her Favorite Things: Cati at 2.5

While I sometimes get annoyed, angry, and frustrated with toddler Cati, I love her more at this age than I did when she was a baby. My favorite part about this age is discovering her personality, likes, dislikes, and quirks. She is constantly cracking us up with the things that she says and does so I thought it would be fun to interview her on some of her favorite things at this age (interview originally done in Spanish). 

• Color: Blue
• Song: Rumour Has It
• Caramelo: Blue M&Ms
• Food: Spaghetti with meat
• Dessert: Ice Cream (lime sherbert)
• Liquid: Water
• Clothes: Yellow monkey shirt
• Book: Mommy's old "teacher's pet" learning book
• Toy: Bunny
• Animal: Tigger
• Number: One
• Shape: Circle
• Letter: C
• Where do you want to work: Hospital
• You are: A precious and intelligent girl (una nina preciosa y intelligente)
• You like to do: Ballet
• Fruit: Oranges
• Vegetable: Corn

I love all the responses and am so curious to see what the answers will be six months from now. I can't believe I'm a mom to a little person with favorites she can voice. 

Crepes Suzette

One of Alex's all-time favorite desserts is Crepes Suzette. One day this recipe showed up in my Google Reader and I forwarded it to Alex. That night he made these crepes. That's right, he made these crepes and I got to sit around and enjoy them without working over the stove or cleaning up the kitchen. I love when we make desserts like this at home because it makes eating so much more approachable; this was a dessert Alex only ever got at fancy restaurants and now he can make it at home any time he wants.
Crepes Suzette
Source: a charmed life
makes 20-25 medium size crepes

Crepes
2 cups flour
2 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
dash of salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla optional
1 tablespoon sugar

Whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder ingredients in large bowl.

Add to the same bowl the milk, eggs, oil, vanilla if using. 

Whisk the ingredients together (I use the whisk attachement on my hand mixer or you can use a blender).
Let the ingredients stand for 15 minutes.

Generously oil saute pan and pour thin layer of batter in pan swirling batter to make thin circle.

Using a thin edged spatula lift edge of crepe and turn cooking a few minutes on each side.  Cook until desired brownness is achieved.

Orange Butter Sauce
2 sticks (1/2 pound) butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 lemon juiced
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 1/2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier liquor

Combine the butter, sugar, orange juice, lemon juice and orange zest in a small saucepan and cook for around 10 minutes until it caramelizes and is golden in color.

Remove from heat and whisk in the Grand Marnier.

Return to heat and continue to whisk until  the mixture is syrupy around 10 minutes.

Assemble
Drizzle a tablespoon or so of the sauce onto crepes then fold in fourths and lay into a heatproof saute pan or a 13x9  baking dish. Pour the remaining syrup over or as much as desired and heat through in oven.  

Serve hot with extra syrup. Garnish with candied orange peel if desired.

Baked S'mores Bars

I love s'mores. I love the combination of graham cracker, chocolate, and marshmallows. Seeing as Cati likes all three of those I decided it was time to introduce her to the greatness that is s'mores. I also decided to step these Baked S'mores Bars up a notch by adding a layer of Nutella. I'm usually hesitant about Nutella in desserts because, for me at least, the Nutella flavor gets lost in the baking process, but now with this recipe. You definitely will not miss the Nutella in this dessert. As for Cati's reaction, she really liked them but she preferred to pick at the marshmallows.

Baked S'mores
Source: Fake Ginger and Sugarcrafter

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 super-sized (5 oz.) Hershey’s chocolate bars
1/2 cup Nutella
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff (I used regular marshmallows)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Spray with cooking oil (optional).

Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until incorporated.
Sift together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until just combined.

Divide dough in half and press half of it into an even layer on the bottom of prepared pan. Spread nutella and then top with chocolate bars, break if necessary to get it to fit in a single layer.

Spread marshmallow fluff evenly over the chocolate layer.

Roll out the remaining dough, just large enough to fit in the 8×8-inch pan. Place dough on top of marshmallow fluff and press down slightly. (Alternately, you can piece it together on top of the fluff instead of rolling but the top might crack apart during baking.)

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until deeply golden. Cool slightly before cutting.

Funfetti Cookies

I don't think you can ever go wrong with anything funfetti. Sprinkles alone make these kinds of recipes fun to make. I personally loved these cookies and found them to be really buttery. Alex, on the other hand, continues his unlike-relationship with almond extract and wasn't a fan of the cookies. The recipe calls for two types of sprinkles but I only used jimmies.

Funfetti Cookies
Source: Two Peas and Their Pod on Tasty Kitchen
Yields:

1 cup Butter, Room Temperature
1-¼ cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1 teaspoon Almond Extract
1 whole Egg
2-½ cups Flour
¼ cups Cornstarch
¾ teaspoons Baking Soda
½ teaspoons Salt
½ cups Rainbow Jimmie Sprinkles
2 Tablespoons Nonpareil Sprinkles

Preheat the oven to 375ºF.

Cream the butter and sugar in your stand mixer (or hand mixer) for about 2 minutes, until fluffy. Add the vanilla, almond, and egg. Beat until well combined.

In a separate bowl, sift in the flour, cornstarch, soda, and salt. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and continue on low speed until it’s all added and combined. Mix in the sprinkles (don’t overmix or the sprinkles will start to bleed into the dough).

Using an ice cream scoop, scoop cookie dough onto cookie sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart (fits 8 cookies per sheet). Bake for about 15 minutes. (Note: Only bake until they very slightly start to turn light golden brown just on the edges. You don’t want them to totally turn golden or they’ll be crisp cookies. Check them around 10 minutes, then 12, and so on.)

Cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container up to 4 days.

Lactation Cookies, Part 3

Breastfeeding has turned me into a huge oatmeal fan. I eat a cup of oatmeal daily and I am always on the look out for recipes that contain oats so that I can get an extra dose of oats in. I came across this oatmeal cookie recipe and decided to add a few ingredients to make it lactation-friendly. You can't even taste the changes and, even if you aren't eating this for breastfeeding, this cookie has extra goodies in it that make them good for you.

I've also made these Oatmeal Lactation Cookies and these Epicurious Lactation Cookies.

Lactation-Friendly Soft Oatmeal Cookies
Source: Adapted from Bittersweet1 on Allrecipes.com
Yields about 3 dozen cookies

2 tbsp flax seed

4 tbsp water

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tbsp Brewer's yeast
3 cups old-fashioned cooking oats

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, combine flax seed and water. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Stir in flax seed mixture.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and Brewer's yeast; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in oats.

Scoop dough onto cookie sheet placing 2 inches between cookies. Flatten each cookie with a large fork.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden in color. Remove from oven and allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Vanilla Cake

I've been on a cake kick lately and after making a delicious chocolate cake, I decided to make a vanilla cake. The cake is actually supposed to have almond extract in it but because Alex doesn't like almond extract, I used vanilla extract. The cake was light and buttery and because I had reached my fill of frosting, I left this cake unfrosted. No frosting made it even more perfect for eating with a glass of milk.

Vanilla Cake
Source: very slightly adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything

1 cup butter
1 cup water
2 cups all-purpose four
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium saucepan bring butter and water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large bowl add flour and sugar and mix. Then add in eggs, sour cream, extract, baking soda and salt. Slowly pour in the boiling butter/water mixture. Stir with a spatula until well combined and smooth.  No need to use an electric mixer. Batter will be very thin.

Pour into a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking sheet. Bake at 375 for 18-22 minutes or until golden brown. Your cake will be flat and not very tall (it's a sheet cake). Cool for about 10 minutes.