There's nothing sweeter...

...than a Steeler victory. Against Baltimore. On Monday night. For 1st place in the division.
Wow - that felt good!!!

In preparation for Monday night's game, Ryan was dressing in black and gold for work. I was afraid to put Hudson in Steeler's garb, especially given the problems we've already had with his daycare (see my previous post). As I was putting his arms into a green shirt, he gave me a look that said:
"Mom - I was born to be a Steelers fan. I don't care if we live in Baltimore. I am proud to be part of Steeler Nation. I drool black and gold. If they decide to not feed me or change my diaper today because I'm wearing black and gold, well, that's just a risk I have to take."

Who am I to deny that? So here he is rockin' his Big Ben jersey:

And here he is doing his best Big Ben impression:

The beard is GONE.

While I'm happy to see my husband's face again, I'm sad that it's due to Steelers loss. Let's hope the O Line wakes up before next Monday.

Any excuse to bake!

I got two new recipes and decided to welcome Fall with some yummy cookies.

First, I tempted Bakerella's cake balls. I was thinking about making some for Hudson's birthday party so I wanted to give them a whirl. Instead of red velvet, I did French vanilla cake with cream cheese frosting and I dipped them in white chocolate or semi-sweet. They are okay - I don't think I like the store bought frosting. Next time, I may try them with homemade frosting.

(If you want to know the best way to make these, here's what worked for me. I baked the cake in a 9x13 pan on Thursday. I crumbled the cake and mixed it with the frosting on Friday. I put it in the fridge for a few hours then rolled the balls on Friday night. I let it freeze overnight and dipped the balls in chocolate on Saturday)

For some reason, blogger keeps rotating this picture, but you get the idea.

I had alot more success with Jaime's pumpkin pizzelles. These are much more cakey than traditional pizzelles. For example, you can fold them and they will bend, not crack. I wasn't sure I was going to like the texture. Then I rolled a few, filled them with maple frosting, and sprinkled with pumpkin pie spice. Now we have a winner!!

I used my Aunt Coll's frosting recipe and just added a few squirts of maple syrup. If you're trying to recreate this, just make a basic icing and add as much syrup as you think it needs to have a maple flavor. I probably added 3-4 tablespoons.

The perfect "side" to a great cup of coffee on a cool Fall day!

And so it grows....

Here's a picture of Ryan rubbing his "lucky beard" after the Steelers victory over the Browns. Two weeks down, 14 to go....

GUILTY!

Ryan was dressing Hudson after his bath and Ryan's mom and I were chatting down stairs. I heard Ryan talking to someone in a more serious tone (i.e. not baby talk). He came down stairs and told us that he gave Hudson his Blackberry to play with, but he didn't lock it (rookie mistake). Hudson was so uninterested in getting his pajamas on that he called 911. And then hung up on them. Needless to say, they called Ryan back to see what the emergency was. Here's a picture of Hudson after the call, still holding the Blackberry and looking quite guilty - we caught him redhanded!

Gazpacho and grilled cheese - YUM!

GAZPACHO (from simplyrecipes.com):

6 ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped (I use 5 - that's all that fits in my food processor!)
1 purple onion, finely chopped (I use half of one onion)
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped
1 sweet red bell pepper (or green) seeded and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons sugar
Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
6 or more drops of Tabasco sauce to taste
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (omit for vegetarian option)
4 cups tomato juice

Method

Combine all ingredients (I put the tomatoes through the garlic in the food processor and then mix in the liquid ingredients in a large bowl). Blend slightly, to desired consistency. Place in non-metal, non-reactive storage container, cover tightly and refrigerate overnight, allowing flavors to blend.

Serves 8.

OLIVE-PESTO GRILLED CHEESE
8 slices ciabatta, halved lengthwise
2T olive oil8t Basil-Almond Peso (see below)
8 slices fresh mozzarella
1/3c pimento-stuffed green olives chopped
BASIL ALMOND PESTO (this makes enough for two batches of grilled cheese, so I freeze the leftover pesto for the next time I want to make this)
1c fresh basil leaves
1/2c fresh parsley leaves1/4c olive oil
2T sliced almonds toasted
2 garlic cloves
1/4t red pepper flakes
minced zest and juice from one lemon
salt to taste
Puree all ingredients in food processor until smooth (Keeps for one week chilled, one month when frozen)

Preheat grill to med-high (I use the Foreman Grill for this). Brush uncut slides of ciabatta slices with oil.Spread 1t of pesto on the cut sides of each bread slice then top with mozzarella and olives. arrange second slice of bread on top. Grill sandwiches weighted down with a baking sheet and bricks (or the lid to the Foreman Grill!) until toasted on one side, 2 minutes. Flip sandwiches over, weight down, and grill until golden and cheese melts, 2 more minutes.

A word from your sponsors...

The family that bleeds (and drools) black and gold...

HERE WE GO STEELERS!!!

Hudson's 1st trip to "Pittsburgh's Disneyworld"!

In March of '07, we went to Disney World with our friends Roger and Kristen. It was my first time there. Kristen is originally from Pgh, so I told her that I thought Kennywood was much better than Disney World. It remained an ongoing joke between us so when Ryan's birthday rolled around, they bought him Kennywood tickets (awesome gift, by the way). We were all excited to get our "Kennywood outfits" on and head to the park with them, but our schedules never worked out. So Ryan and I made an impromptu trip to Pgh last weekend so that we could use the tickets before the park closed for the season. We went with Hudson and my brother Joey. We had a great time! Hudson is already excited for next year when he can actually ride something other than his stroller. I think he was eyeing up those Potato Patch fries too!

Mommy and Hudson at the entrance

George Michael getting some fries.

Hudson, Mommy, and Cowboy Joe

Until next year....

The story with the beard...

A bunch of you have been asking me what's up with Ryan's beard. In the 11 years that we've been together, I have never seen him with facial hair. While we were in Ocean City, he just got lazy about being on vacation and didn't shave. That resulted in this:

You can't really tell from this picture, but this is when he started to look like George Michael, i.e. Hudson's "Father Figure". He's been complaining for a little while that he's had the same haircut for like 10 years, but doesn't not what else to do with it. Once he started to grow the facial hair, a light bulb went off and he decided that this was the way to change his look. I wasn't worried about it lasting for too long since I know that it gets itchy when it grows in. Around this time, the beard turned into this:

The next day, he decided that he couldn't take the itch and went to shave it off. Just as he lifted his razor, it dawned on him that the Steelers have been winning (their last preseason game and first regular season game) since he had the beard. Similar to the playoff beard in hockey, he decided that he couldn't shave it now. It just wouldn't be fair to us as Steeler fans, the men in the black and gold, and the entire city of Pittsburgh if he were to contribute to a loss just because he shaved. So the beard continues to grow. My hope is that he'll end up looking like a contestant on Survivor by the time February comes.

I'll try to post weekly updates following each Steeler victory. Here we go....

Daycare woes

If you're reading this blog, you probably have already heard me complain, complain, and complain some more about Hudson's daycare. I've decided to post my complaints here. I figured that maybe if I unload them, I can stop ranting about them. Okay, be prepared....

1. On day one, I was greeted with an "Oh Lordy!" when I came to pick Hudson up.

2. Following that wonderful greeting, I walked into the classroom to find Hudson on the floor crying while another teacher just sat in the rocking chair doing nothing.

3. Also on day one, I was told that he was needy and a bully.

4. Lastly on day one, I was told that he did "1,2 buckle my shoe" as his activity - he was there for 5 hours.

5. During the first week, I called and said "Hi, this is Jenn. I'm just calling to see how Hudson is doing". I got a one word response - "okay".

6. I would ask how Hudson was doing when I would pick him up and they would just say "he'll adjust" - not answering my question.

7. They gave him food that they weren't authorized to - I signed a paper saying to only give him what I provide.

8. That food was pudding...prior to us ever introducing dairy to him.

9. They didn't see anything wrong with that.

10. I dropped him off one morning at 8:55a and the teacher put him in a stroller. I came home and watched the online video of the center and she sat there talking to other teachers, while Hudson was just strapped in the stroller, until 9:25a.

11. That same day, I saw Hudson put into an Exersaucer multiple times throughout the day. One time, he was crying while the teacher just sat on the rocking chair, doing nothing.

12. As if this day wasn't stressful enough, I went to pick him up and saw that his crib sheet was all wet from what I presumed where tears. I have specifically asked them multiple times to not let him cry himself to sleep.

13. There were days when his teacher would past me in the hallway and pretend that I was a stranger and not even say hello.

14. Following a meeting with the Director about items 1-13, Hudson was moved to a new room. Upon meeting the teachers, they kept asking why he was getting moved there and stressed that there were no other kids that were Hudson's age in their room (i.e. they were far from welcoming).

15. Also when I first met them I told them that Hudson was to only eat the food I provide. They continued to challenge me and tell me how to feed Hudson, during which they mentioned that they feed the infants Pop-Tarts.

16. Upon hearing the Pop-Tart comment, I said that we don't give Hudson sugar. The one teacher defiantly said "well, yogurt has sugar in it!" (I mentioned that I gave him yogurt).

17. The new teachers couldn't ensure that Hudson would not cry himself to sleep.

18. Whenever I drop Hudson off, I put him on the ground and he'll start to cry. The teachers drag their feet to come and sit and comfort him.

19. I walked in the other day and the local hip hop/R&B station was playing on the radio.

20. Hudson routinely comes home with food plastered to his head. To do this justice, I took a picture of the blueberries smashed into his head (it was with my cell phone, so not a great pic):

I'll stop the list at 20 to avoid overkill :) I think you get the point by now.

The marksmen of the Point

Thus far, I have not delivered on my promise to provide entertainment by way of Point stories. And it has not been for lack them. It's that my blogging-binge tendencies aren't able to keep up with the randomness of everyday life in the Point. There were three recent stories, however, that deserve to be mentioned.

Before I delve into the stories, let me first set the stage for those of you who have never been to the Point. The Point (or Locust Point if you want to know it's correct title) is a historic peninsula town that serves as one of Baltimore's earliest ports. In the mid-1800s, rowhomes began to pop up to meet the needs of the ever-growing workforce that was employed by the shipping industry. In fact, the house that Ryan and I used to live in was built in 1875. Many of the "locals" in the Point live in the same houses that their families have lived in for years. The locals are refreshing to me as they remind me of my Pittsburgh roots. For the most part, they're blue collar workers that stress the importance of families, friends, and good neighbors. On any given evening, you can go outside and see them sitting on their stoops chatting the night away while they wait for the ice cream lady to drive by. Anyways, back to the history...Within the last 5 years, the Point began to flourish in the real estate boom. Many of the rowhomes that were originally purchased for a few thousand dollars were being renovated or knocked down entirely to fit the needs of the incoming yuppies flocking to the area. There is currently a clear distinct between the locals and the newbies. Lucky for Ryan and I, we had a great neighbor who was well connected with the locals and introduced us. Ryan used to enjoy his nightly chats with the little old ladies of the neighborhood. But then Ryan and I moved a few streets over into one of those new developments that I mentioned. Our new community, while in the Point, is somewhat sheltered from its glory.

1. Ryan and I were walking Hudson one afternoon. We were back in our old neighborhood. I happened to glance over at this one basement window (these are rowhomes, so the basement window is in line with the sidewalk). This is what I saw:

I wasn't sure whether I should take this as a threat or feel privileged that such a sharp shooter is living down the street.

2. Our old neighbor Melissa is in the know when it comes to Point happenings. We also go to her for the latest gossip. So, we asked her about the drug dealers that used to live next to us. (If I haven't already posted this, the greatest Point story of all came from one of the drug dealers, Mike, that sat down with us one night and told us everything about his life, including how he got his old girlfriend pregnant and his current girlfriend's dad's friend bit him on the shoulder - we even got to see the scar). She said that she wasn't sure Mike was still around and I mentioned that I saw him down the street, so maybe he was living with his mom now since that's where she lived. Well, Melissa says "I wonder if his mom is the woman who was found dead in that house". She proceed to tell us this story:

There is a rowhome broken into multiple apartments (this is where Mike's mom lived). Apparently, there was a dog there that kept barking. So, one of those damn yuppie couples called the police. When the police came, they found a woman dead inside. Following the police visit, the yuppie couple started to find pieces of cut-up baby doll on their front step. Eventually, they moved out of the Point.

Yep, someone made "threats" by mutilating a baby doll. I couldn't make this stuff up.

3. I was working in my office at home the other day. There was someone at my door. I opened it to find a young (early 20s) guy on my front step. I was prepared to tell him that I didn't want to buy a newspaper subscription so that he could go to college (yes, I'm mean.) Instead, he asked me if I wanted to buy some steaks and seafood. The confused look on my face prompted him to tell me that it was raining and he didn't feel like working so he wanted to get rid of the steaks and seafood in his delivery truck. I told him that I didn't have room in my freezer for that (which is true) and he told me that he'd throw in a free freezer. Uhhhh...what?!?! I told him no thanks and quickly locked the door.

The education of a mother

I went to campus today for the first time in 2 weeks. I forgot that classes have now started. I've always loved this time of year. In addition to the obvious reasons (Steeler football, Fall weather, and pumpkin flavored food items), I relish in the excitement and anticipation of "back to school". I remember how eager I was to get back into a "school routine" once I came back to grad school. The first week brings so much zest that the rest of the year severely lacks. You would go to class, get your syllabus, and look forward to (or dread) all of the upcoming assignments. There's something about that first week or so that makes school life so appealing. Even homework is welcomed.

While I was on campus, I couldn't help but to examine all of the fresh faces (and cringe when I realized that some of these students were born in the 90s!). I peeked into a few of my classrooms (as a grad student almost all of your classes are in one of three classrooms). I saw some of my professors teaching classes that I took 5 years ago. I was reflecting on how different things were back then.

5 years ago, I was so driven to make a difference. I started school with great hope of all that I was about to learn and put to use. I thrived on the discipline of deadlines, meetings, and study sessions. I actually looked forward to Saturdays, not because it was a day off, but because it was a day that I could sit back and leisurely do school work at a coffeeshop. Now, I look at myself today and things couldn't be more different. My role as a psychologist has taken a backseat to the things that are important, namely my role as a mother and wife. Everyday, I struggle to motivate myself to move forward on my dissertation because my mind is preoccupied with what I can make the family for dinner or what new books I want to get for Hudson. The work that used to be so invigorating is now a nuisance.

So I looked at all of those first year grad students today and hoped to infuse some of their enthusiam into my hardened, apathetic view of this dissertation and doctorate process. While I used to be motivated by the prestige associated with the three letters P-H-D, I'm now overwhelmed by the importance of three different letters: M-O-M.

Hudson's first actual vacation

Let me start this post by saying that I'm somwhat of a binge blogger. I never seem to have the time to post when I want to, so I keep a mental list of all the things I want to write about and then I just go to town posting when I have a free minute (i.e. when Hudson goes to sleep without any fight).

So last Wednesday, we loaded up Lucy (my Aztek) and made the 2.5 hour drive to Ocean City, MD. My mom, Jack, Aunt El, Joey, Kelly, Randy, and Brandon were all ready there. Hudson fell asleep before we even travelled a mile from the house. Unfortunately, that wasn't an indication of the remainder of the trip. He woke up about an hour outside of OC and proceeded to cry the entire way there. Well, I'm not sure if you call it crying when it's just a bunch of screaming with no tears. Anyways, we were so excited to finally get there. We all went out for steaks to celebrate my birthday and we came back to the condo for some delicious Giant Eagle birthday cake (yes, my family really loves me - they routinely transport Giant Eagle cakes out of state).

The next day we attempted to go to the beach, but it was a little cloudy. That didn't stop Hudson from enjoying himself. Here he is showing off his new top teeth (you have to look closely):



That night, the Steelers were playing a preseason game, so what choice did we have but to deck ourselves out in black and gold and head to the local Steelers bar, The Salty Dog Saloon?!?

We were able to get in some good beach time on Friday. Here's Hudson playing with the new dumptruck that Grami bought him. The kid is obsessed with wheels.

Saturday, our last full day, was the hottest of them all. Therefore Hudson got to squeeze in some pool time.

We had a great trip!!

BofA portfolio feature

I just know Jenn's gonna kill me for writing an entry about finance stuff. Oh well, she's out to dinner with the "Girls" so I'm free to write whatever I want :)

Did you ever wish you could aggregate real time data from various financial accounts onto one summary page? If you're a nerd like me, you do and the Bank of America website offers an excellent solution to existing customers for free. The feature is called "My Portfolio" and it allows you to link almost any type of online account to your BofA page. You can add your 401k, IRAs, equity accounts, mortgage accounts, saving, checking, other credit cards... you name it and BofA can link to it.

Once all of your online accounts are linked, you can choose to view either a summary of your overall networth (kinda scary if you have a fat mortgage left to pay off :) or a more detailed view that shows up to date information on any securities you currently own. You also have the ability to track your progress over time using their advanced charting capabilities.

Why do I find this so handy? At the beginning of every month, I create an Excel report that details our household networth (sans mortgage). I then compare the current months data with last months data and ensure that we are either flat or (idealy) moving upwards. It's a crude finanical report card.

This process normally takes me about an hour: I gotta log into each account, ensure I pulled the right data, and create all of my reports. Now, all I have to do is log onto BofA and click on the "My Portfolio" link at the top to get the same results.

If you have an account, check it out. I'm confident you'll find that you can't live without this feature once you start using it!