Guinness Cupcakes with Baily’s Frosting

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!  Our weather here has been absolutely beautiful for the past several days so we spent quite a bit of time outside, but I did manage to try out this new recipe in honor of St. Patty’s Day.

I realize that had I been thinking clearly I would have done this post prior to St. Patrick’s Day, but I didn’t decide I wanted to try out these little bits of yummyness until the day of, and just because they have Guinness and Baily’s in them doesn’t mean that they can only be enjoyed on the actual St Patrick’s Day Holiday.  They were easy to make and very tasty.  However, I do believe that if you were to have a couple in one sitting that you could get a little bit buzzed.  So please enjoy….in moderation 🙂

I borrowed this recipe from SuzyBakes, (posted below) but actually cut it in half because I knew there was no possible way we would finish 2 dozen cupcakes.  FYI….if you would like to cut the recipe in half as well I highly reccommend converting the measurements into ounces, and using your food scale because it’s much easier to use half of 6oz then it is to try and measure half of 3/4c etc.

For the (full recipe) cupcakes you will need

1 bottle Guinness

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

2/3 cup sour cream

Preparation:

  • Combine your flour, sugar, baking soda and salt into a large bowl and set aside.
  • Bring Guinness and butter to a simmer in large saucepan  over medium heat.
  • Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth.  Cool slightly.
  • Beat eggs and sour cream in a large bowl with an electric mixer.
  • Add Guinness-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat until just combined.
  • Add flour mixture and beat on low speed.
  • Use a rubber spatula to make sure all ingredients are thoroughly combined
  • Divide  batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 17 minutes rotating about half way through until your cake tester, inserted into center comes out clean,
  • Cool  cupcakes on a rack completely before frosting.

For the Frosting:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

 3 to 4 cups confectioners’ sugar

3 tablespoons Bailey’s Irish Cream

1 tablespoon milk

Preparation:

  1. Place the butter in a  mixing bowl and beat until creamy.
  2. Gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well  after each addition, until the icing is  thick enough to be of good consistency. You may not need to add all of  the sugar. (I probably used about 2 cups and my icing was creamy, not stiff, but that’s how I like it)
  3. After all sugar has been added, add Bailey’s and milk and blend until just combined.
  4. Frost once cupcakes are completely cooled and decorate as you wish

The cupcakes were deliciously rich with just a hint of Guinness flavor, and the sweetness of the sugar blended pefectly with the Baily’s to balance out the entire cupcake….although, just like any chocolate dessert, I highly reccommend a nice cold glass of milk to go along with it!

Have you ever used beer or another flavored liquor to bake with???

If so…please share 🙂

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by Jenny on March 19, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in In the Kitchen, Sweet Bakes
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Posted by Jenny on March 19, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/03/19/guinness-cupcakes-with-bailys-frosting-8/

Get in Shape Girl

Are there any other 80’s babies out there who remember this??

I definitely had the cassette and video as a little girl growing up and remember wanting to be just like the girls on TV.  However, my personal favorite piece of workout equipment was my ballet bar.  I started taking dance classes when I turned 3 and contiuned with Ms. Fordu until I was 18.  I still to this day have no idea how she was able to choreograph so many numbers for so many years.  She was Amazing!

Oh…and I LOVED the water!  Swimming has always been a big deal in my family.  My brothers and I were introduced to the water at a very young age.  We all took lessons until we were old enough to be on the swim team and I continuted to do that competitively until I was 18.  I loved swimming and I was pretty good at it 🙂  The pool was and still is….My Happy Place.

I remained active and still had a speedy metabolism through college so I stayed relatively fit.  Then my mid twenties hit and everything slowed down.  I no longer had that speedy metabolism, and if I went too long without working out, my body showed it.  Then I got pregnant

and had my Beautiful Baby Boy

and for the best reason possible….my entire body transformed

I know it’s a fact of life, that as you age your body changes (especially after carrying and birthing a baby)  and I’m sure I will never have my 18 year old body again, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have some semblance of it.  And because I am one of those people who does better when given a plan to follow, and someone to help hold me accountable for my workouts I have decided to take on two challenges.

First…I signed up for a training group to help prepare me for the Huntersville Sprint Triathlon on April 29th.

It’s a 500M Swim, a 20K (12mi) Bike Ride, and a 5K(3.1mi) Run.  I’m in a group of 6 women that meets once a week with our trainer (The Race Director) for a group workout, but we have also been given a workout plan to follow for 6 days of the week which is great for me because I don’t have to think about what workout I will do for the day.  It’s all laid out for me!  I started my training back in January and it consists of 2 swimming workouts, 2 biking workouts, and 2 running workouts per week.  I did my first sprint triathlon back in 2008, so this is not my first, however, the distances are a bit longer and this one is much bigger so I think the training will really benefit me come race day.  After getting back into the water and swimming laps I realized just how much I missed it, and eventhough I am not nearly as fast as I once was, I have already noticed my times improving, and for that I am pleased.

The second thing that I just recently started is Tina’s Best Body Bootcamp.  Again it’s great because it is a workout plan that is laid out for me with specific circuit training workouts and cardio options, for 5 days out of the week.  It works perfectly with my Triathlon Training, as I am able to coordinate both for a complete body workout.   Add in some healthier eating habits and I am determined to feel good about my Mom Body come Boat Season!!  I have never let the numbers on the scale dictate my happiness with my body, because I’m not in any way shape or form petite, and I will never weigh 120 lbs because  that is not a healthy weight for me, rather, I will know I reached my goals by the way my clothes feel on me, and the way I feel when I look at myself in the mirror.

I enjoy working out, and I love the way it makes me feel when I’ve completed something that has pushed my body to a certain limit so I am excited, and determined to Live my Best Life, and part of that means rocking my Best Mom Body before I get pregnant with Baby #2!

 Do you have workout that takes you to your happy place??

3 Comments
by Jenny on March 9, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Exercise, Life
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Posted by Jenny on March 9, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/03/09/get-in-shape-girl-2/

8 Months

So Garrett is 8 months old…..already. It seems like yesterday he looked like this, and its hard to believe that a little over a year ago we had just picked out his name. It’s bittersweet that our baby is so quickly becoming a little person, but it’s so much fun watching him learn and grow every day.

February was a very busy month for us.

Garrett went swimming to the pool

Flew to Florida to visit Grandma and Grandpa Brewton

And got his first cold.

 Although that was no fun for any of us, I have to say I am pleased that we made it through 8 whole months without so much as a runny nose!

We don’t go back to the Dr.’s until the end of the month so I don’t have any offical stats right now, but if I had to guess, I would say Garrett is just over 19 lbs and around 31″ long.

He’s wearing 9-12 month clothes

Size 5 shoes!! (which is very big for an 8 month old)

He easily maneuvers from his belly to a sitting or crawling position and vice versa

Is very mobile and perfectly capable of getting up on all fours and taking one or two movements forward

but realizes that he can get to where he wants to go much faster if he crawls with his belly on the ground

He enjoys being outside

as long as he is not sitting directly on the grass

He sleeps at least 9 hours at a time

Eats 3 solid meals a day (mostly pureed, but he’s starting to get the hang of finger foods) and takes 3-4 bottles a day

Loves playing with Daddy (even when he’s under the weather)

Bathtime in the big tub

and is the best ever at making people smile.

We love you so much Monkey!!

3 Comments
by Jenny on March 5, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Baby Cakes
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Posted by Jenny on March 5, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/03/05/8-months/

Blondies

I came across yet another fantastic recipe from Cook’s Illustrated a few years ago when I was searching for something sweet but a little different for me to bring to a bridal shower.  I had the All Time Best issue and decided to try their Blondies Recipe. 

You will need…

  • 1cup pecans or walnuts (4 ounces)
  • 1 1/2cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
  • 1teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2teaspoon table salt
  • 12tablespoons unsalted butter ( 1 1/2 sticks), melted and cooled
  • 1 1/2cups packed light brown sugar (10 1/2 ounces)
  • 2 large eggs , lightly beaten
  • 4teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 6ounces white chocolate chips (1 cup) or chopped bar, or 3 ounces each white chocolate and semisweet chocolate chips

1.  Pre-Heat your oven to 350 and line a 13×9″ baking dish with two sheets of aluminum foil overlapping one another and hanging over the edges to make for easy transfer from the pan to the cutting board.  Coat aluminum foil with nonstick spray and set aside. 

If your nuts are not already toasted you’ll need to put them on a cookie sheet and pop them into the oven for a few minutes (until they’re fragrant. 

2.  Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside.

3.  Whisk melted butter and brown sugar together in medium bowl until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Use a rubber spatula to fold dry ingredients into egg mixture until just combined making sure to not over mix 

Fold in chocolate and nuts and turn batter into prepared pan, smoothing top with rubber spatula.

4.   Bake until the top is shiny, cracked, and light golden brown about 22 to 25 minutes.  Be careful not to overbake or else your blondies will be dry, and fall apart. 

Cool on wire rack to room temperature. Remove bars from pan by lifting foil overhang and transfer to cutting board. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.

The recipe is relatively easy to follow, and these tasty treats are sure to be a hit wherever you may take them!

Are you a Brownie or a Blondie type of Person?

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by Jenny on February 15, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in In the Kitchen, Sweet Bakes
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Posted by Jenny on February 15, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/02/15/blondies/

The Story of Us

My friend Brittany over at A Healthy Slice of Life had this as the topic of her post yesterday, and I loved it!  It got me thinking and remembering moments in my own relationship so…in honor of Valentine’s day I decided to borrow it from her 🙂   

  1. How long have you and your significant other been together?  7 and a half years and counting!

2.  How’d you meet (What’s your “love” story?)  My best friend and I were trying to decide whether we were going to move  here or to Atlanta after we graduated from College in 2004 and we were in town visiting for a weekend in May.  We went to a friend of a friends house to “pre-game” (they knew each other from OU) and Carly and I were just hanging out talking on the porch when in walked this tall, dark and handsome man (solo may I add) who didn’t even stop to say hello or introduce himself, rather just beelined into the apartment and sat down at a table in the back with his buddy.  I immediately thought he was rude and unfriendly and really didn’t think about him again until we got to the bar and all of a sudden his liquid courage settled in and he offered to buy us shots, and beers, and probably a few more shots 😉  After we had a few drinks he finally came up to me and introduced himself and we hit it off.  We danced at Buckhead and talked and then walked back to our friends apartment together because the cab was full , and had our first kiss at a crosswalk.  We hung out for the remainder of the night and exchanged numbers but he didn’t call….for a while.  Actually he accidently called me (when he meant to call his friend Jim one night several weeks later) apparently our names were next to eachother in his phone book.  He was slightly intoxicated and swore he tried texting me a few times before (but I didn’t have texting on my phone yet so I never knew)  However he called the following day…sober 🙂 and we began our courtship over the phone and internet. Carly and I decided that Charlotte was going to be the place for us and the Friday after I moved (August 20, 2004) Dan and I had a date set up.  He brought me a bottle of wine (which had never happened to me before) and took me to a restaurant uptown called Harry and Jean’s.  We had a very nice dinner and he dropped me off afterwards.  He was to meet up with his friends and Carly and I were headed out as well.  We ended meeting back up later that night and the rest is History!

I remember Carly being so bummed because we were new to the city and hoping to have a while of being single together and lots of time to meet and date different guys but Dan wowed me in every way possible and I was smitten immediately! 

3.  If married…How long have you been married?  We celebrated 2 years of marriage this past September 5th

4.  Where did you get married?  Big or small wedding?  We got married in Willoughby Hills, Ohio at Manakiki Country Club on Saturday September 5th 2009.  It was a pretty big wedding with about 235 people and a picture perfect day

5.  Do you have any nicknames for eachother?  He sometimes calls me QT, I call him babe

6.  Name 3 things you love about your honey.  It’s hard to pick only 3 but He is one of the hardest working men I’ve ever met in my life.  He does so much to make sure our family has everything we need and that Garrett and I are taken care of.  He’s extremely intelligent.  So much so that he’s earned the nickname Ernie from several of our friends 🙂 He knows so much about so many things and if he doesn’t know the answer to a question he reads until he figures it out. I learn from him every day.  He’s an AMAZING father.  Honestly before we had Garrett I had never really seen him around babies, so I didn’t know what to expect, although I had no doubt he’d be great.  He’s patient, and caring, and loving and he is as amazed by our little man as I am.  I couldn’t ask for a better husband or father to our son.

7.  Tell us how he proposed.  Dan is anything but cliche so when he proposed to me on Valentines Day 2009 I was completely shocked.  We had been dating for 4.5 years before he popped the question but lived together for 3.5 and I wanted it to happen and thought it would at some point…I just didn’t know when and I was getting a little antsy 😉  One of our favorite things to this day is to cook together and drink a great bottle of wine.  He’s an amazing cook and we had a very nice bottle of wine that we’d had for 3 years but were “saving” for a special occasion.  I didn’t even know he’d taken it from our wine rack on Valentines Day when we both set out to run a few errands.  We said no gifts so when he handed me a box before dinner I was a little perturbed.  He insisted that I open it before we ate so I obliged.  It was a box from Crate and Barrel and inside of it there was a wine decantuer (which we actually needed) so I wasn’t too bothered anymore.  However, next to the decanteur was a bottle wrapped in tissue paper.  It was our “special” bottle.  A 1998 Bottle of Grgich Hills Cabernet Sauvignon and when I turned around he was down on his knee in our dining room and asked me to marry him ❤

 

 

 

8.  Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?  More of a card and nice dinner kind of a guy although he likes to change it up here and there 🙂

9.  Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?  Definitely have the opportunity to be the pop in a movie and relax on the couch more than a sunset dinner on the beach.  Not to say I don’t enjoy both 🙂

10. Tell us one thing you’d like to do with your significant other one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?  So much.  Raise our family and put them through college, and travel as much as possible.  I’d like to take our family to Germany one day

11.  Tell us what you plan on doing for Valentine’s Day.  Cooking dinner, putting our baby to bed, and relaxing with a glass of wine by the fire.

12.  Are you asking for anything this Valentine’s Day?  Nope, I have everything I could possibly wish for!

13. Give us one piece of advice for keeping a relationship strong and full of love.  Don’t forget to put yourselves first, take time to talk and make sure you are on the same page.  Dream together, work as a team and love unconditionally

14.  Show us a picture of what love means to you

Happy Valentine’s Day!

6 Comments
by Jenny on February 14, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Family, Holidays, Life

Posted by Jenny on February 14, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/02/14/the-story-of-us/

My Top 10 not so common Kitchen Gadgets

I can’t count the number of times when I’ve been at my in-laws and my Mother in-law has whipped out some handy kitchen gadget that I’ve never seen or sometimes even heard of, but that makes so much sense, and I immediately say….I have to have that!  And usually the next time I see her…..she shows up with one for me!

Some of my favorites are staples in probably most kitchens,  however, I do have a few that perhaps you have never heard of but may make a lot of sense to you as well. 

So…here are my top 10 (not so common) kitchen gadgets

1.  Avocado pitter

 This one made my top ten because even though it’s not a “must have” it sure makes the job much easier.  The smaller end is great for scooping the pit out without removing any meat from the avocado, and the wired end makes the perfect avocado slices.  It’s also great because it can be used for tomatoes, cantaloupe, melon, and just about any other fruit or vegetable that has a soft flesh.

2.  Potato Masher

This one made my top because it too is a multi-tasker and does a great job not only mashing potatoes (to your desired consistency) but aslo avocados for guacamole 🙂

3.  Cookie Scoops

The cookies scoops are great because who doesn’t love something that will give you perfectly shaped and sized cookies with every drop, but I also love the larger one for cupcakes.  It forces me to make sure I don’t overfill my cupcake tin which brings me to my next one

4.  Cupcake Transporter

I LOVE my cupcake carrier.  It’s kind of an all in one gadget that gives you your nonstick cupcake tin, a stand to carry them on, and a container that not only snaps on and keeps them from shifting when you’re taking them to a friends, but also keeps the frosting soft and creamy for days after you make them!

5.  Cheese Slicer

I’m not sure if you can tell from the picture but the silver thing is the handle that holds a taught piece of wire.  You lift the handle and put the cheese on your board and your slicer will create perfect slices every time!

6.  Panini Press

Yes this is great for actual paninis or just plain old grilled cheese sandwiches, but we like to use it to cook sausage links.  Each groove is the perfect size for a sausage link and because you press the top down the heat is distributed evenly and the cooking time is cut in half!

7.  Spaetzle Maker

 If you’ve never had or heard of spaetzle, I highly recommend you try it (maybe I’ll do a post on it sometime) It’s a German side dish that’s part noodle part dumpling and all deliciousness!  Not exactly healthy but sooooo good.  The metal grate looking thing sits on top of a boiling pot of water and you pour your dough on it (spaetzle dough is thick) you use the small spatula looking thing to smooth it over the holes so it drops into the water to cook.

8.  Instant Read Thermometer

Simply put it takes the wait and the guessing out of a regular thermometer.

9.  A Good Set of Sharp Knives

 So probably not that uncommon in the sense that most people know how important they are, not only because they make the job easier, but also safer.  A dull knife makes for a longer chopping process and a much more dangerous one as well.  Spend the money….you won’t regret it

1o.  Garlic Press

 I don’t know about you but my least favorite thing about cooking with garlic is the way my fingernails seem to hold on to the smell no matter how many times I wash my hands.  With my garlic press I don’t have to chop and I can spare my hands the smell

I could probably go on and on about my favorite appliances, but that would make my post even longer than it already is and I won’t put you through that 😉

What is your favorite kitchen gadget?

Can it be used as a multi-tasker?

 

 

 

1 Comment
by Jenny on February 8, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in In the Kitchen

Posted by Jenny on February 8, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/02/08/my-top-10-not-so-common-kitchen-gadgets/

30 Years Young!

Yep! You read it right, yesterday marked my last day in my 20’s, therefore today marks the first day in my 30’s! Hopefully the title of my post relays to you that this is not a sad day for me…by any means…rather it’s an exciting day, a day when I get to start living the next thirty years of my life and making them even better than the first.

Now, I’d be lying if I told you that I haven’t been listening to Garth Brooks’ song “My Next 30 Years” for the past 3 days…

…or if I said that I’m not racking my brain in an attempt to create my bucket list;

but again, I’m not telling you these things so you will feel sorry for me, not even for a second. In fact, I hope you’re ahead of me and have started your bucket list as well!

I have been incredibly blessed throughout my life, and I will be the first to admit that. I have an AMAZING family with parents that worked their butts off to make sure that my 3 brother’s and I had every experience we wanted as we grew up and continue to stand by us through thick and thin…And who love us unconditionally, and with no reservations in regards to who and what we love 🙂

Oldie but a Goodie!

I have an extended family that many would kill for, a relationship with my inlaws that people could be jealous of,

and the Very Best husband to ever walk the face of this Earth. Not to mention our incredibly adorable son! What’s not to be thankful for??

So yeah….I had to retake the sign and vision portion of the driver’s test in order to renew my license and Iwill be bumped up to the 30 year old age group when I compete in my Triathlon in April, but I’m fine with it! In fact…..I welcome it (hopefully it will give me a leg up on the women who are in the later part of their 30’s 😉

I have lived a lot, and loved til my heart swelled, and lost a few who will forever remain dear to my heart. But thankfully I’ve had more to smile about than cry about in my last 30 years, and I am looking forward to seeing what my next 30 have in store for me!

Bring it 30…I’m ready for you!

Do you have a bucket list??

If so, what is one thing you have on it?

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by Jenny on February 1, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Life

Posted by Jenny on February 1, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/02/01/30-years-young/

Homemade Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping

If you’re like me and enjoy skipping the boxed mix for cakes, cupcakes, brownies and muffins, when you can 😉 but prefer a recipe to help you out a bit, then you need to know about Cook’s Illustrated.

If you’re not familiar it’s published by the people from America’s Test Kitchen, so there is a lot of trial and error and science behind their cooking, (perfect for my Hubby who loves to know how and why things work) We’ve tried several of their recipes and haven’t had a bad one yet!

So here is the Cook’s Illustrated recipe for:

Best Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping

Streusel Topping

  • 3tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 3tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • Pinch table salt
  • 1/2cup plus 3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour (3 1/2 ounces)
  • 5tablespoons unsalted butter , melted and warm

I find that when I’m baking and I measure by weight, that my recipes turn out better because the ingredients are more precise.  You can use a food scale, just be sure to tare the scale after you place whatever receptacle you’ll be placing your ingredients in on it.

Instructions for the topping:

Stir together sugar, brown sugar, salt, and flour in small bowl until combined. Drizzle with warm butter and toss with fork until evenly moistened and mixture forms large chunks with some pea-sized pieces throughout. Set aside.

Muffins

  • 2cups fresh blueberries (about 10 ounces), washed and picked over
  • 1 1/8cups sugar (8 ounces) plus 1 teaspoon
  • 2 1/2cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces)
  • 2 1/2teaspoons baking powder
  • 1teaspoon table salt
  • 2large eggs
  • 4tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly
  • 1/4cup vegetable oil
  • 1cup buttermilk
  • 1 1/2teaspoons vanilla extract

*Did you know that if you don’t have buttermilk on hand that you can substitute 3/4 cup of yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup of milk???  I didn’t but it worked…and it saved me a trip back to the store!!!

 FOR THE MUFFINS:

Heat your oven to 425 degrees and spray your muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray

Bring 1cup of blueberries and 1teaspoon of sugar to simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Stir frequently while cooking and mash the berries with a spoon until they have broken down and the mixture is thickened and reduced to 1/4cup (about 6 min)

Transfer to a small bowl and cool to room temperature 10-15 minutes.

Next, whisk your flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl and set aside.

Then whisk 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs together in medium bowl until thick, about 45 seconds.

Slowly whisk in butter and oil, then the buttermilk and vanilla until combined

Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture

and remaining cup blueberries into flour mixture

Mix until just moistened (being careful not to overmix) your batter should be lumpy

Use an ice cream scoop or a large spoon to divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups (batter should completely fill cups and mound slightly).

Spoon a teaspoon of the cooked berry mixture into center of each mound of batter.

Using a chopstick or skewer, gently swirl berry filling into batter using figure-eight motion.

Sprinkle streusel topping evenly over muffins and bake until muffin tops are golden (about 17 to 19 minutes), rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes,

Then transfer to wire rack and cool 5 minutes before serving

Cut your muffin in half and put a pad of your favorite butter in the middle…

I like to close my muffin back up after I put the butter on it so it melts a little on both sides 🙂

…or if you prefer your muffins plain that’s fine too because these muffins are so good that they still taste great!  And you can enjoy them in the morning with your coffee, or at night with a glass of milk 🙂

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by Jenny on January 31, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in In the Kitchen, Sweet Bakes
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Posted by Jenny on January 31, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/01/31/homemade-blueberry-muffins-with-streusel-topping/

How is our Little Man already 7 months old???

I just cannot believe that our baby is only 5 months away from being 1 year old!  How did he get so big so fast??

Although it is bittersweet how quickly time seems to be passing us by, we are definitely enjoying our monkey right now.  He is one of the happiest babies I’ve ever known, and he’s been sooo good….sometimes I feel like I should be waiting for the other shoe to drop 😉

Regardless….we are so blessed to have such a healthy and happy little man, and this exploratory stage he’s in right now is just the cutest thing! 

Here’s what we’ve been up to this past month…

  • Weight and Height…guestimates are just over 18lbs and 29in
  • Even 12-24 month socks are a little small for bigfoot here

  • We bought a convertible carseat and though it’s much bigger and I can’t just plop it in a shopping cart (it stays in the car)…he seems much more comfortable in it
  • Sitting up by himself with minimal topple’s over

  • Getting super fast at scooting (army crawling) towards us or a toy

  • Likes to blow raspberries

  • Starting to pull his feet up underneath him and putting his butt in the air in preparation for crawling (won’t be too much longer)

  • Motors in his little walker, especially after the dogs
  • Tries really hard to open up drawers and doors (sometimes accomplishing the door feat)
  • Eats just about anything you give him (including toys and fingers) although food still needs to be pureed

 

  • Is able to pick up small finger foods like peas, carrots, etc but hasn’t quite begun to like the texture yet
  • Seems to have finally gotten the hang of his sippy cup with a straw, and will drink a little bit from that
  • Still LOVES bathtime and jumping either in your arms or his jumperoo
  • Sleeps consistently between 9 and 12 hours a night, waking (if at all, only once to nurse and goes right back down
  • And as always….smiles

laughs and squeals in delight about 90% of his awake time 

The other 10% looks like this…

if he’s had enough pictures

or this…

if he’s had it in general 🙂

But most of the time he’s a very Happy Guy!

Garrett….we hope you know that your Daddy

and Mommy

both

you very much

You Sir…Make our World Swirl Happy 🙂

 

 

1 Comment
by Jenny on January 25, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Baby Cakes

Posted by Jenny on January 25, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/01/25/how-is-our-little-man-already-7-months-old/

A Day in the Life

Before I had Garrett I was an educator. I taught elementary aged students for 5 years and pre-school aged students for a year and a half and I loved it! Yes I had my rough days or weeks in some cases, but I still loved it…all of it. I loved the feeling of accomplishment I got on a daily basis and I loved the structure it added to my life. If I don’t have structure I tend to lose motivation and if I lose motivation I start to lose myself and what’s important and healthy for me.

I knew from the day Dan and I brought up the topic of kids that if I was able to I wanted to stay home with them, and I’m fortunate to be able to do that. I love my life and my job as a Mom but it took some getting used to and it constantly takes motivation and planning my weeks/days to make myself feel accomplished. Several people have asked me (especially at the beginning) what I do all day (as if taking care of an almost 7  month old isn’t enough 😉 now that I’m not “working” so I figured I’d do a post about a day in the life of us!

My apologies if what we do with our days doesn’t interest, you don’t have to read 🙂 but my hopes are that you’ll at least enjoy the pictures of our smiley little man!

G’s been waking up around 6 a.m. every morning for a quick feed but he always goes back down afterwards for another hour or 2 making his official wake up time between 7:30 and 8:15. He hardly ever cries in the morning when he wakes up, rather he just lays in his crib and entertains himself (most recently he’s figured out how to turn on his song/nursery rhyme projector and smiles at the songs and pictures on the ceiling)
He ALWAYS wakes up happy, which makes getting up so worth it!

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We’ll usually play for a little bit then get dressed and ready for the day

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Between 8:30 and 9 Garrett is ready for breakfast so we head downstairs to eat some oatmeal mixed with fruit. He’s a very good eater and will typically eat any type if fruit we give him but pears are his favorites!

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After G eats, I eat and then we play some more, change a diaper and (depending on the day of the week) either get ready to go to the gym or play until he’s ready for his morning nap, which almost always comes 2 hours after he wakes up for the day

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If we go to the gym, he usually falls asleep in the car for the 10 minutes it takes to get there and no matter how hard I try to keep him asleep when I drop him off in child watch he always wakes up and stays awake for the whole time, so the women feed him and play with him while I workout, and I always get a good report from the staff and compliments on what a happy baby he is so I won’t complain.

If, we’re at the gym he’ll fall asleep again on the way home and though he wakes up when I get him out of the car, I can usually get him to fall asleep as soon as I put him in his crib, and he’ll sleep for about 45 minutes to an hour.

During this time I try to squeeze in a quick shower, and go through my to do list so I can figure out what I need to do for the day.  By the time I get that done, it’s close to Noon and he’s up and ready to play again!

It’s usually around this time that Daddy is able to sneak away from work for a few minutes (it’s nice having him work from home : ) and come and say Hello!

Where is Garrett??

After we play for a few minutes it’s time for lunch so we head back downstairs and eat a fruit/vegetable combination and a little bit of water….followed by some play time with his dishes

Sometimes….we get out and have lunch with friends, and it’s at this time that G gets to practice sitting up like a big boy in a high chair without a tall back : )

When we finish lunch we’ll sometimes take a walk with the dogs or run errands and by the time we finish with all of that, it’s usually time for his afternoon bottle and nap

Yes he seriously does do this to himself….don’t worry, we took his blanket off of his head after we snapped the picture : )

Afternoon naps usually last about an hour and half and I take this time to finish laundry, pick up the house, get things ready for dinner, or just take a break and catch up on my DVR shows…..Mommy needs some time to herself too 😉

When G wakes up, we play a little more (lots of playing in the Brewton Household) and then head downstairs so Garrett can torture play with the dogs while cruising in his motorcycle walker

He’ll play in his walker (or help us cook in his baby bjorn) while I get his dinner ready (usually a meat/vegetable puree) and attempt to make our dinner (if it’s my night to cook) and then we’ll all eat and clean up just in time for some family play time!

After we play for a bit it’s time to warm up his bedtime bottle and head back upstairs for Bathtime which he LOVES!

Dan and I both have to bathe him because he’s such a wild man in the tub….I can’t wait to get him into a pool to see what he does!  Then it’s jammies, bottle and bedtime for this monkey.  We’ve got a great routine for Garrett’s bedtime that fortunately has worked extremely well for us since the beginning.  He never has a problem going to sleep even if he’s wide awake after his bottle.  He’ll play a little in his crib…roll around to get comfortable and within 10 minutes and by about 8 o’clock he’s down for the night!

I love that he’s down pretty early because it gives Dan and I time to just relax and enjoy each other’s company (which is SO important to me) and the perfect ending to my day!

We usually head up to bed around 10 or so and watch a little TV or read so that we can be up and ready to do it again the next day!

What’s your favorite part of the day??

4 Comments
by Jenny on January 16, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Baby Cakes

Posted by Jenny on January 16, 2012

https://sweetbakesandbabycakes.com/2012/01/16/a-day-in-the-life/

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