Month: September 2011

Categories
Family/Travel

Couples Shower

We celebrated my brother’s upcoming wedding with family & friends again last weekend. This shower was hosted my parents’ friends aka the Golf Girls group. I enjoyed time with family & also catching up with old family friends.

The food was delicious & the wine was definitely flowing for me! How cute are Nana & Dad and Christy & her nephew Robert too?!

Beth & Steven opened some great gifts and the Golf Girls gave my parents & Beth’s dad frames.

At the last shower, we didn’t get many photos of the families so I made sure we did this time! Just over a month until their big day! I’m so excited!

Categories
Travel Trying To Conceive

Unplugged

This past week I’ve been 99% unplugged. I was in Edenton, NC & spent 11 hours a day in the claims office & the other time at a local B&B. Nice people. Pretty historic district. Some good restaurants. No cell service with my provider.

I could go a few miles south to a restaurant to have it, but where I was all week: nothing. There was a bit of WiFi at the B&B but only if I was in the other part of the place or a certain middle spot on the bed. So without my control, I took a week off from twitter, my google reader, & blogging here too. I’m going to try to play catch up before I head back there Monday morning.

So thanks to Irene, I’ll have two weeks unplugged from city life. From normal day-to-day life. From 4G internet. From Moe kitty. And from Husband. And thus, from TTC.

We decided we’d just let or not let things happen on our own this month. No crazy old wives tales & no meds. I chose to make these work travel plans around future RE appointments realizing that meant that I was probably ovulating in a B&B in Eastern NC alone yesterday. Here’s hoping the $$ I make helping out is enough for a IUI cycle or two or that this weekend home does the trick. 😉

Another Infertile Friday. Hope your week was filled with hope & happiness. Sometimes a week unplugged can do that for you.

Categories
Everything Else Food

DWB Pancakes

I came home from BlogHer with a stack of coupons for some products I already used & loved as well as some new ones. One of the products I was most excited to try was De Wafelbakkers frozen pancakes. I’d sampled them at their breakfast on Saturday morning & received a cute reusable bag, T-shirt & coupons then.

We are breakfast people. Every morning & sometimes we even do breakfast for dinner. Typically it’s cold cereal or fruit as I run out the door during the work week. But with DWB pancakes, after a quick 1:15 in the microwave, you’re enjoying delicious blueberry pancakes! Be careful they come out HOT & can get tough if you overcook. But in our microwave, a minute 15 seconds is just right for pancake yumminess.

Here’s straight-out-of-cell photos from Monday morning as I was running late to head to Edenton. But still had time to make pancakes for me & husband. Yay! I like mine spread out with syrup. He’s a stacked with butter guy. What’s your breakfast/pancake style?

DWB provide me with the original pancake coupon as a result of BlogHer. As a result of this post, I’m hoping to get a few more coupons {& $250 if I’m their favorite review post}. What’s in it for you? Your own , & if I’m chosen, one commenter gets $$$ for leaving me breakfast comment love. My opinions were not influenced by their generosity & are my own honest thoughts.

Categories
Photography

Project 365 Weekly Update

Thirty five weeks into my attempt to take a photo every day. I succeeded in doing so this week!

Day 246: First NCSU tailgating & game of the season. Also the first win!

Day 247: I arrived at OIB early Sunday. This was my view coming over the bridge.

Day 248: Another beach day. Soaking in the last rays of the summer.

Day 249: Tuesday morning I had an new cycle baseline ultrasound appointment as well as my super tightly closed cervix dilated to prepare it for an IUI. It was painful; I squealed & cried. Due to an ovarian cyst, I got the news too that we’re benched from medial help TTC this cycle. I laid around in the fetal position all day but did take this picture of Moe. I guess my guest room bed cover matches my green monster IF post.

Day 250: Only photo I took Wednesday was of Slow Love.

Day 251: After book club, I ran to Fresh. I got Jason a hot dog combo & me banana pudding ice cream.

Then I walked into the den from making Apple Cake to find Moe like this.

Day 252: We drove up to VA Friday night. Mom was finishing the glaze when we arrived. Here’s the apple cake right before we pounced into it.

How was your week?

Categories
Food

Jean’s Fresh Apple Cake

My aunt’s MIL, Jean Owens, is a professional caterer. Somehow, I don’t have a copy of her cookbook, At Your Request, but I borrowed my Nana’s to share this recipe. I’ve loved this cake when my mom’s made it before, & we decided it would be perfect for our family for this weekend as we’re gathering to celebrate another shower for my brother. I had a bunch of fresh NC apples I’d picked up from my work’s farmer’s market, so I volunteered to bake.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c vegetable oil
2 c sugar
3 eggs
3 c peeled & chopped apples
1 tsp vanilla
3 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 c light raisins {omitted & subbed in 3/4 c craisins}
1 c chopped pecans or walnuts

Glaze:
1/2 c butter
1 c light brown sugar
1/4 c evaporated milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:
In large mixing bowl, combine oil, sugar, eggs, apples & vanilla. Beat well by hand {do not use electric mixer}. In separate bowl, stir together flour, salt & baking soda.  Add the flour mixture to the apple mixer & stir together. Fold in raisins & nuts.

Pour into greased & floured pan. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes for layer pan or 1 hour for bundt pan {I used bundt}. Verify doneness with the clear fork test.

To make glaze:
{I baked the cake Thurs night & we made glaze Friday night in Richmond because I didn’t have the evap milk. Thanks mom!} Combine butter, sugar & evaporated milk in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Cook 3 mins to thicken. Add vanilla, cool & spread on cake.

Jean likes Granny Smith apples for this cake. I used local NC Fugi & it still turned out delicious.