How Things Can Change in Just One Year...

My last post was just over a year ago.

What have I been up to since then?

I expanded my family.

John Brian, aka Jack, born March 14th, 2017 at 8:22 pm.

He weighed 7 lbs 9 ounces and arrived exactly one week after his due date, and 12 hours before he was set to be evicted by induction.

I woke up throughout the night with some cramping but figured it wouldn't amount to much. I really wanted to experience the natural onset of labour since I was induced with Evelyn, but figured due to my super-cozy womb, that I'd be induced again. The cramps continued in the morning but, again, I didn't think it would escalate. I was set to be induced the next morning at 8 am and John and I were planning to go out for dinner that night for one last date night before becoming a family of 4. 

I went to my OB appointment at 11:30 where she told me I was 2-3 cm dilated and likely in early labour. She did a sweep to see if that helped things along and let me tell you - move things along it did!

I got home around 12:30 and light contractions had started. Thankfully John was working from home so he was my timer. 

23 minutes apart, lasting about 45 seconds.

Then 17 minutes apart.

13 minutes.

7 minutes.

They were coming sooner and sooner and getting more intense. 

I had a bath with Evelyn to see if that helped soothe the pain but it didn't do too much.

By 3:30 I was doubled over on the ground in agony, wondering why I had wished for labour to start on it's own!

We got in the car and drove to the hospital shortly after.

I was only 3-4 cm dilated but because I was in so much discomfort they admitted me. The doctor came in and gave the okay for the epidural (the first thing I asked for) but the anesthesiologist was in the OR and wouldn't be able to come for another hour or so. 

Thankfully it was only 45 minutes but my goodness it was the longest, most painful 45 minutes of my life!

But when he came in with his cart of wonders I was ecstatic. 

Once the pain meds kicked in I could relax. 

It was 5:45.

By 8 pm I was fully dilated and ready to go.

Our sweet little fella came into the world at 8:22 pm after only about 10 minutes of pushing. 

He is one calm, cool baby and we're so in love with him.

Evelyn has become a wonderful big sister and though she will sometimes ask me to put him down, or say "no boys!" when we're having girl time, she also loves petting his cheeks and giving him kisses.

It's wonderful.

#IbelieveSurvivors

Today a judge found Jian Ghomeshi - former radio host of the once popular CBC show 'Q' - not guilty on one count of choking and four counts of sexual assault.

I, like many others, am saddened by the news. 

This isn't a commentary on the legalities of the case or even my way of saying the judge was wrong. My knowledge of our legal system is unfortunately fairly limited so I can't really properly argue against any of the court proceedings or findings. 

I will, however, comment on what many people are talking about: believing survivors of sexual assault. 

I am very, very fortunate in that I have never experienced sexual assault firsthand. There have been times I have felt unsafe, in situations like simply being a woman walking home alone at night. I was even followed once. I've endured unsolicited cat-calls and come-ons and been called names for shutting them down.

But I am fortunate. 

I've watched a friend have a drink roofied (thankfully she was with a large group and got home safely), and have heartbreakingly had a friend confide that she was sexual assaulted.

But I am fortunate. 

Several years ago, I was sexually harassed by a coworker. 
I wasn't really even able to process it as such until a few days later. 
He was an overweight guy who often asked for my nursing expertise (I was in school at the time and always showing up to work with giant textbooks) with health topics like exercise and nutrition. It wasn't unusual for me to get a text from him asking for some healthy recipes. 
One night, after a few questions about health matters, he asked if I ever masturbated. 
I wasn't sure how to answer but chalked it up to it being another health related question, albeit not a comfortable one. I told him everyone did and it was normal. 
Then he asked how tight I was. 
I was taken aback and didn't know how to respond. 
I laughed it off, thinking it might have been a joke. 
He apologized for offending me and I shut the conversation down.

I told another coworker the next day and his response was to also laugh it off. His response was essentially, "that's hilarious. You're not actually mad are you? He's harmless. Poor guy, he doesn't know how to talk to girls. We should help him".

Here's why I'm fortunate: I told my husband (who was my fiance at the time) and he flipped out. And not in a possessive 'you-can't-speak-to-my-woman' kind of way. He didn't laugh it off, and he didn't downplay how angry, upset, and embarrassed I was. He was angry that someone would disrespect me by asking such a vulgar, inappropriate question. 
Despite my protesting, he actually phoned the guy up and read him the riot act. 

Here's why I'm fortunate: I have parents and a sister who were similarly outraged and encouraged me to speak up. They never for a second laughed it off. 

Here's why I'm fortunate: I had another coworker that I confided in who took a similar stance. He didn't laugh, he didn't sympathize with the guy, he didn't discount my anger and embarrassment. Instead, he let me know that this guy had done similar things to other female coworkers. He encouraged me to report him to our supervisors and told me that he would encourage the other young women to do the same. 

Why did I laugh it off at first? Why wasn't I completely outraged until a day or so later? I didn't tell anyone right away because I was so embarrassed that I opted to just pretend like it never happened. I consider myself a strong feminist, but sadly I even questioned whether I was partially to blame. Had I led him on by not ending the conversation sooner?

When I did tell people, I got mixed reviews. When I told my supervisors at work, they held a formal meeting. I had to repeat the extent of the conversation and felt uncomfortable having to say the question he asked me out loud. I was afraid that they would think I had invited the question by not ending the conversation when he asked about masturbation. They eventually handed down disciplinary action: he was suspended for a short period and then wouldn't be allowed to work any shifts when management was not there. A slap on the wrist, really. 

Here's why I'm fortunate: When I wasn't sure how to react, I had supports that believed me, that didn't dismiss my emotions, that never once let me feel I was in any way to blame. 

While I don't feel right comparing my situation to those of the brave women who spoke out against Jian Ghomeshi, I can understand why they might not have wanted to. 

Maybe their initial reaction to the assault wasn't what we'd expect it to be. Maybe they weren't initially outraged. Maybe they laughed it off, in an effort to pretend it wasn't happening. 

Maybe they didn't tell anyone right away because they were afraid that the people they confided in would laugh it off, or say that poor Jian was harmless, or worst of all, maybe no one would believe them. 

Maybe they were afraid that they would have to relive the event, speak the words out loud again, and have people blame them and shame them for baiting him or leading him on. 

Maybe they were afraid that after all of it, after coming to terms with their own emotions, after confiding in friends who didn't believe them or who sympathized with their assaulter, after having to publicly relive the events and risk being shamed and judged, maybe after all of that they were afraid that he would walk away with nothing more than a slap on the wrist.  

The outcome of the trial is not what many of us wanted. But we're talking about it. My Facebook feed today was filled with angry men and women demanding justice for survivors of sexual assault. 

Let's continue to talk about the culture of rape that exists in our society. Let's continue to talk about how often sexual assualts happen and the staggering statistics of how infrequently they are reported. Let's continue to talk about why that is. Let's not dismiss, blame, or shame someone when they have the courage to talk about sexual assault. 

Someday perhaps we will finally unanimously recognize these individuals as brave for coming forward. Someday perhaps we can ensure that offenders of sexual harassment and assaults don't walk away with mere slaps on the wrist. Someday survivors of sexual assault won't need reassurance that we believe them.

But until then, 

#Ibelievesurvivors

What I've Been Up To ...

Long time no post!

In my defence, it isn't always easy to find time to sit down and write - let alone actually do stuff worth writing about - when you have a busy infant. 

But as busy as I am, life is amazing. Evelyn is just the best and I feel so privileged to get to watch her grow everyday. 

She is days away from 9 months and crawling, cruising on furniture, and just this Wednesday she took her first few solo steps. 

I swear I blinked and my baby turned into a kid. 

I am so in love with and so in awe of her. 

The other reason I've been away is because I've started a collaborative blog with my friend Kayla! 
It's all things lifestyle so you can expect a nice mix of recipes, fashion, parenting, DIY projects, travel, and more. 
While I definitely tend to be a lone wolf on a lot of things (I'm certainly introverted but may also have some control issues...), I have to admit that it is really fun working on a blog with another person. Having someone else's opinion and take on topics is wonderful and the collaboration means I don't have to stress about posting something every few days. We share the load (if you didn't say that like Samwise Gamgee then I'm disappointed).

Check out my other blog here! 
I'll try to keep posting here as well but it will likely be less often than over at birch & bubbly. 

Tuesday's Child : 27 & 28 Weeks catch up!

I missed last week as we were in Chicago so I've doubled up this week.
Check it all out here
And hopefully soon I can get a Chicago recap up!

Tuesday's Child : 26 weeks (6 months!)

My little doodle-bug is half a year! Where did those 6 months go?

Read all about what she's been up to here (plus check out her adorable 6 month picture. So begin the sitting pictures because it's impossible to get her to lay on her back anymore).

Gluten Free Brownies, or, baking with coconut flour

Guess what I did?

I baked!

two items!

I've been invited to a baking party next weekend and since two of my friends are gluten intolerant, the challenge is to find a gluten free recipe.

I've baked with rice flour before and wasn't particularly wowed by it, but I pretty much substituted it exactly for regular flour which you can't always do.

I debated buying the gluten free all purpose flour but decided to be more adventurous and instead I bought coconut flour to experiment with.

Turns out you have to make a few adjustments to your recipe when using coconut flour as it tends to be more absorbent than your standard all purpose flour.

After scouring Pinterest, my first experimental recipe was for a lemon loaf. 

It sucked.

It tasted too eggy, which was no surprise considering it called for 6 eggs. 

I tried again.

Brownies.

A big winner.

There's a nice hint of coconut (there would have been more if I had used coconut oil and coconut milk as the recipe calls for) so if you like the taste of coconut, grab some flour and give this recipe a whirl.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a brownie pan with parchment paper.
• Over medium heat, combine 1/3 cup coconut oil, 1/4 cup butter and 1/2 cup honey until melted. In a heat-proof bowl, add 1/2 cup chocolate chips. Pour oil & butter over chocolate and allow chocolate to begin to melt, then stir until combined. 
• Add in 1/2 cup coconut milk, 1 tsp vanilla, and 2 eggs. 
• In a separate bowl, combine 1/2 cup coconut flour, 1 tbsp cocoa powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda, and 1/4 tsp salt. Mix into wet ingredients with a whisk to get rid of lumps.
• Pour into brownie pan and bake for 25 minutes.  

Tuesday's Child : 25 Weeks

One day I'll do something worth blogging about again. 

One day.

In related exciting news though - keep an eye out for a new collaborative blog hopefully coming in the near future that a friend of mine has proposed! 

It will be all things lifestyle related - recipes, DIY projects, home renos, style, you name it, we're hoping to blog about it!

In the meantime, my kiddo slept overnight in her crib for the first time last night and it was bittersweet. 

Read all about it here :)

Tuesday's Child : 23 Weeks

It's Tuesday!

Kiddo is asleep on the couch beside me. 

I blogged!

Read all about it here

Tuesday's Child : 22 Weeks

It's Tuesday.

It's 7:16 am.

I've showered. I can see spots on my head where my hair has visibly thinned. I've had one cup of coffee. I've posted my Tuesday post.

Baby E was up at 5:45 this morning....

Today might be a long day.

But we're experimenting with solid (bit of a misnomer as it's 75% breast milk and not solid at all) food!

Read about it and watch the cutest video here 

And send long baby nap vibes my way today cause coffee ain't cutting it.

Hosting a Book Club Party?

I'm up next for hosting book club and if you don't know, I love planning parties. 

I thought it would be fun to coordinate snacks with the titles of the books we've read so far.  

John and I brainstormed a bit last night in bed (which admittedly went on longer than it should have, knowing that we were losing precious minutes of sleep because this baby of ours is up by 7 am every day) and then today I took some of my favourites and edited pictures.

Yes, this is what I've been doing in my spare time today.

Sorry household chores. 

Mama's getting creative.

To be slapped onto the outside of a bucket filled with ice, keeping our vino chilled.

To be put on a baguette. Ride that grain, girl.

(This one is also my favourite, editing wise).

I couldn't find the proper font to match and couldn't space out the letters to make it a perfect fit but I think I can be forgiven in the name of goat cheese.

I also like this one. I was going to flip around 'GIRL' to 'GRIL' but... too much work. 

Again, I can be forgiven in the name of sweet, sweet grilled pineapple.

Bear Paws and Teddy Grahams. Deeeelish.

Also contenders: 'I am Malollipops', 'Stilton Alice' (for the cheese plate), 'Eleanor & Pork'

Maple Bacon Cupcakes

As promised, I've been baking!

The icing is coming but I've done the cupcakes so for now you'll get the recipe for those.

With a small child who requires entertaining, baking these days gets done in stages or not at all. 

I'm only blogging because she's been napping like a champion today. I suspect a growth spurt.

For John's birthday we're doing a 'Ron Swanson' theme (from Parks and Recreation) because they share many likes and dislikes. 

Taking Ron's love of breakfast food I googled some bacon cupcake recipes.

This one does not disappoint.

Recipe from the glorious website Bacon Today

Maple Bacon Cupcakes

(makes about 10 cupcakes)

• Fry 6 pieces of bacon then mince into small pieces. Set aside about 1 tbsp of bacon grease and allow it to solidify in the fridge.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin.
• In a bowl, cream together 4 1/2 tbsp butter with 5 tbsp brown sugar. Add in 1 tbsp bacon grease. Add in 1 egg and 4 tbsp maple syrup.
• In a separate bowl, mix together 1 1/4 cup flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 pinch salt. 
• Mix half of the flour into wet ingredients, then add 1/4 cup milk and the rest of the flour.  Fold in the minced bacon (about 1/4 cup).
• Pour into muffin tins (filling about 3/4 full) and bake for about 20 minutes. 

Bacon!

Maple icing recipe coming up soon :)

Tuesday's Child : 21 Weeks

Guess who made the most of baby's short nap to blog?

This mama.

Read all about it here!

Now we're off to pick up passport photos and cat litter. 

Busy day.

P.S. John's birthday is on Saturday so stay tuned for a savoury cupcake recipe!

Tuesday's Child : 19 Weeks

Someone was up at 6 and then took a nice snooze from 7:30-8 so that I could get todays post up!

My first mother's day was wonderful and got me thinking about what being a mother means to me.

Read it here!

Coffee Cake Muffins

This week has been long with my little monkey who can't stay asleep for naps after noon. 

She gets so overtired and fussy and I get irritable and am now completely spent.

I'm very much looking forward to the weekend!

Especially since Sunday is Mothers Day.

I'm hoping for an hour long bubble bath.

Also maybe muffins.

Here's a recipe for some delicious coffee cake muffins you could make for your mom!

This recipe is pretty much word for word the recipe on the Martha Stewart site, only I substituted  raspberry yogurt (full fat. It's tastier) for sour cream (which I didn't have).

1. Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Prepare streusel topping: In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 cup flour, and 1/2 tsp salt. With a pastry blender or two knives, cut in 1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into small pieces until mixture resembles large coarse crumbs; refrigerate until ready to use.
2. Butter and flour a jumbo 12-cup muffin tin (or two 6-cup muffin tins). I used a silicon pan which made removing the muffins without only taking out the tops SO easy. In a small bowl, whisk together 1 3/4 cup flour, 2 tsp baking powder, and 1 tsp baking soda.
3. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup yogurt (I used raspberry), 1 cup granulated sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat in 2 eggs, one at a time, until well combined. With mixer on low, beat flour mixture into butter mixture.
4. Divide half the batter among prepared muffin cups. Top with half the streusel mixture, then remaining batter, and top with streusel. Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired.
   
   
   

   Happy Friday!

Tuesday's Child : 18 Weeks

Last week I finally got around to making those coffee cake muffins. 

This week I will post it.

It all depends on the doodle-bug taking some much needed naps....

Read why this week has felt long already here (it has to do with naps and squealing)!

Life Hacks: Episode 1

So... I tried (so far unsuccessfully) to make coffee cake muffins today. 

Baby E was fast asleep in her car seat after our walk home from mommy & me yoga (which we had to leave early because she was tired and refused to sleep. She felt crying would be better) so I put her up on the table and reclined her and decided to spend the quiet time getting some baking done.

But my brown sugar, having been relegated to the back of the cupboard for too many moons, is hard as a rock. So while I attempt to soften it up I decided to start a series of life hacks. 

I got the idea from my talented friend Danielle over at Ginger Rose who comes up with incredible food hacks for Kraft Canada. 

Instead of food hacks (because 1. I'm not clever enough to think up any and 2. I can't get my ingredients in order to actually do this) I'm going with life hacks. 

Life hacks for the sneaky and lazy woman. 

So here you go. 

Episode 1. 

Enjoy :)

P.S. Don't tell John he's been getting duped for weeks. 

Tuesday's Child : 17 Weeks

Sorry for the lack of posts - last week I was out of the house most days and truly I've done nothing worth blogging about.

Hopefully that will change this week!

Here's my Tuesday baby post in the meantime - complete with another video!

Birthday Baking Part 2: Cracker Jack Cupcakes

Part two of the delicious birthday cupcakes is up!

Again, recipe is courtesy of The Brunette Baker.

Start with the base:

Peanut Butter Cupcakes

(or no-nut butter if you're like me)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin tin with muffin cups.
• In a bowl, cream together 2 cups packed brown sugar, ½ cup butter, and 1 cup peanut butter/no nut butter. Add in 3 eggs, one at a time, and 2 tsp vanilla. 
• In a separate bowl mix together 2½ cups flour, 2 tsp baking powder, and ½ tsp salt. Mix into the peanut butter mix, alternating with 1¼ cups buttermilk.
• Fill liners 2/3 full and bake for 14-18 minutes then allow to cool.  

Then pull out the salted caramel you made before and whip up some salted caramel icing

(it's maybe the best icing I've ever made):

Salted Caramel Icing

• Cream together ½ cup butter (softened), 4 cup icing sugar, and 1 cup salted caramel. If your frosting isn't the right consistency (mine wasn't) then add cream or milk 1 tsp at a time until the desired consistency is reached.  

Put it all together by topping your cupcakes with caramel corn and peanuts (I don't think I have to mention that I skipped the peanuts) and then drizzling with salted caramel. 

These cupcakes are so tasty and very decadent so you probably won't want to eat more than one. 

But if you do, go for a second without any hesitation!

Tuesday's Child : 14 Weeks Old

It's Tuesday!

AND - my dad's birthday!

Happy happy birthday Daddy-o! 

I love you :)

Birthday Baking Part 1: Salted Caramel

My dad's birthday is on Tuesday and we're planning a baseball-themed party.

I volunteered to be in charge of desert so I'm making an appropriately baseball-themed desert: 

Crackerjack Cupcakes (& cake balls)!

Because there are a few steps involved I thought I'd share and break the process down into two posts.

First up: salted caramel.

Be warned, this is DELICIOUS and you will have a hard time not eating most of this before you use it. 

Make extra.

(Recipe from The Brunette Baker)

Makes 2 cups.

• Over medium-high heat, combine 1 cup sugar with 4 tbsp water and bring to a boil. Without stirring, allow sugar to boil until it turns a golden-amber colour - about 6 or 7 minutes. **Do not leave the stove as this colour change happens quickly** 
• Remove from heat and carefully add in 1/2 cup heavy cream and 1 tsp vanilla. Do this carefully as the mix will bubble up. 
• With a wooden spoon, stir in 3/4 cup room temperature butter and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir until butter is melted and incorporated.  Pour into a container and allow to cool. 
• Dip everything in your kitchen into a spoonful of this sauce and try not to eat the entire jar. 

I want to make so much more of this sauce. 

So much more.

Save at least a cup of this for part two of the cracker jack cupcake recipe!