Danish Puff

Oh sweet holy goodness. Do I really need to say more?
There are several things that my mom made growing up that scream HOME to me. This is one of them. My mom only made it once or twice a year, usually on Christmas morning. I always thought that it must be a huge production and be so time consuming to make because of this. And I remember thinking that she always got up super early to make it. (Now I realize that she always got up super early.) The first time I decided to make this for someone, I got up at 5 AM thinking it was going to take me hours. I was fooled. This recipe is so easy and delish. My mom always topped hers with slivered almonds. I have recently taken to topping mine with fresh sliced strawberries. I think it makes it a little more refreshing and tones down the richness. Jason thinks the strawberries make it taste more like a dessert and I think it makes it taste more like a breakfast ... so do with it what you will. With no further ado, the recipe.

Danish Puff
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup flour
2 Tbs. water

1/2 cup butter
1 cup water
1 tsp. Almond extract
1 cup flour
3 eggs

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbs. butter
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
1-2 Tbs. warm water

Heat over to 350. Cut 1/2 cup butter into 1 cup flour until particles are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 2 Tbs. water over flour mixture, mix. Gather pastry into a ball and divide in half. Pat each half into a rectangle, 12x3" on a cookie sheet. Rectangles should be 3" apart.

Heat 1/2 cup butter and 1 cup water to a rolling boil, remove from heat. Quickly stir in almond and 1 cup flour. Stir vigorously over low heat until mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add eggs, beat until smooth and glossy. Spread half of the topping over each rectangle. Bake until topping is scrip and brown, about 1 hour. Cool slightly. Topping with shrink and fall, forming the custardy top.

Mix powdered sugar, butter and almond extract together. Stir in warm water, 1 tsp. at a time until glaze is of desired consistency. Spread over top of pastry. Top with desired toppings.

We worked so hard to avoid it...

... but Benton landed us in the hospital. Tuesday he was spiking fevers upwards of 104.2. We finally got them under control with Motrin. The only thing keeping us out of the hospital on Tuesday was that he was still nursing and making wet diapers. Wednesday morning when he woke up he still had a slight fever but his breathing was about the same or had improved a little. So I was naive enough to think we were on the mend. Alas. At about 3 PM I was getting really woried that Benton hadn't nursed since 10:00 AM. He also had only taken two 15-20 minute naps all day when he normally takes three 1 to 1 1/2 hour naps. We were both exhausted. I had called the doctor and she told me to keep trying for another hour and then to call her back. Well, we tried everything under the sun from nursing to a sippy to a syringe. To no avail. I begged and pleaded and cried, but he would have none.

So I called the ped back and she told me to bring him in to the ER. (And can I just say that having your ped call into the ER ahead is the way to go.) We waited less than 5 minutes and the ped made the calls and not the ER doc. Nothing against the ER doc... but he didn't know that the levels for dehydration in a kid were different than for an adult so he was ready to send us home even when I couldn't force a bottle of Pedialite down his throat. Did I ever mention Benton does NOT like bottles.

Although being at the hospital sucked, they treated us great. When I was in the ER trying desperatly to get Benton to take some pedialite and he was screaming and tired and miserable, the sweet nurse could see how exhausted I was and came in and took him out of the room and walked around the ER bouncing him to calm him down and then she tried to get him to take the bottle. It didn't work, but my arms and my sanity really appreciated the short break.

At this point the ped decided to have us admitted. They started an IV and moved us up to a room. They had a crib set up there for Benton that looked more like an animal cage than a crib. It was pretty ancient. I really hated it. They kept hasseling me about putting the other side of the crib up so he wouldn't roll out. Dude... he doesn't roll, I promise. And honestly, even if he was a roller, he doesn't have the energy to do so. It woke him up every time I attempted to put the side up because as I mentioned it was ancient and LOUD.

They had to tape his arm to a board because he wouldn't keep it straight...go figure. And that Really ticked him off.They brought in this cute gown for him to wear. He couldn't wear one of the Baby ones because they didn't snap at the shoulder and he couldn't get it on with the IV. The poor boy was drowning in it. But it was sure cute.At this point the nurse walked in while I was taking pictures and gave me a weird look and said, "you're taking pictures of the poor kid?". What was I supposed to say? "yep". All I could think was this woman is obviously NOT A BLOGGER.

Well, I spent A LOT of my time like this.Wasn't he so cute and pathetic looking all at the same time.They kept trying to get his blood pressure which was a joke. The baby cuff came off anytime they blew it up and the child one drowned him. But it was pretty cute.By morning he was a much happier kid. Daddy came to visit and got a few smiles out of him.And he got him to play a bit. And for the record, he ended up loving the continuous pulse-ox monitor. (The thing on his foot). He was always trying to pull his sock off to get at it. This usually bumped it which sent his stats down which in turn made the machine make horrible sounding LOUD beeping noises.

I am just so glad to be home- away from hourly alarm from his IV at which point a nurse would come in to make sure that his IV hadn't become infiltrated, of course waking him up from a sleep I had just managed to get him into from the previous time they had come in. Needless to say we are glad to be home and sleeping.

Oh RSV- How I Loathe Thee

Benton has RSV. It is a nasty thing I tell you. On top of that he has also developed an ear infection. The poor kid just looks so pathetic. I have to admit that yesterday I was getting a little scared. He had high fevers, was wheezing so loud you could hear him across the room, slept off and on all day...mostly only while being held, and was pretty much limp when he was awake. I can't even tell you how scary it is to see your baby's eyes glazed over while they dart around. I don't know exactly how we managed staying out of the hospital. I think that last night he had a minor breakthrough though. At one point when I got up with him he was barely wheezing at all. A few hours later he was back to normal and I was giving him a 4 AM breathing treatment, but hey baby steps right?

Here I am giving Benton one of his first breathing treatments.

Doesn't he look stoned. And yes, I'm still in my pajamas....don't judge me. I swear it was only like 11:00. And so what if I didn't actually shower until after Jason got home from school at 6. Remember the wanting to he held at all times part?Ocassionaly he decides that he wants to suck on the thing. Fine by me.When Jason got home we decided to try using the mask because supposedly it is better because they are getting more of the medicine.But, he was not having it.

Back to the other way.This is the best part. Sometimes during the treatment you can see that it is starting to make him breathe easier because he conks out.And finally, Tab wants to be a helper. So he was holding the nebulizer for me while I changed Benton's diaper. (and yes I know they are supposed to be sitting up or semi-reclined, but I figured a few minutes while I changed a diaper wouldn't hurt)

My Child of God

Tab loves us to sing to him and he is really starting to sing with us. Sometimes I'll come into the room to find him singing to Benton. So I convinced him to sing for the camera so that I could share it with all of you.

Ain't nothing sexier than...

A man in a suit playing soccer with his kid. Tab has recently started playing soccer with a bunch of the other med student's 2 & 3 year olds. He had so much fun. It was absolutely hilarious to watch. Jason's hands are on top of his head because he is trying to teach Tab how to play without using his hands.

Go Tab!

He got a little sidetracked by something interesting on the sideline.

Hot Chock-a-Nock

Over the winter Tab fell in love with Hot Chocolate. It's not a hard thing to do you know, unless your my weird husband that doesn't eat chocolate. Please don't throw tomatoes at him. I still love him despite his faults. Anway, I digress. I recently found some sugar free chocolate milk single serve mix-ins called Moo Magic that were on sale. (Click the Moo Magic). So I thought we would give them a try. Tab really enjoyed them as you can tell by the chocolate milk mustache. Tab calls this treat his Hot Chock-a-Nock. 1. We don't serve it warm, he just is confused by having had hot chocolate all winter. 2. He can say Chocolate Milk 3. He used to not be able to say Chocolate Milk and therefore called in Chock-a-Nock. Jason was telling me (in front of Tab) how he missed how Tab used to call it Chock-a-Nock. 4. He has combined the prior points to call it Hot Chock-a-Nock.

Independence, It's so... Liberating

Benton is in a new stage; a stage I don't remember Tab ever going through. He has really mastered sitting up and playing and reaching for his toys. This has made him so independent. The other day I sat him on the livingroom floor with a pillow behind him, just in case, and went off to do my thing (read: clean). About 2 hours later I realized that I hadn't heard so much as a squalk out of him. I'd walked past him a million times and he didn't even care. He was too busy playing. I guess it also helps that Tab has started to enjoy playing with him, which also helps to keep him busy and occupied. So Benton's new found independence has been liberating for me.

Here are some taken right after he fell over. He was trying to get the camera. (And, no, I don't think his hair needs to be cut. I LOVE IT! I love the way it is out of control and sticks up in every direction.)Oh wait, you want to take pictures of Benton? Not gonna let you do it. Ain't never gonna happen. Cheese!Tab is just like what I hear that his father was like when he was a kid. He likes to be the one getting the attention. So it is very hard to get pictures of Benton without Tab jumping in front of him or trying to be a goofball.

Boys & Their Toys

Tab has an obsession. The name of this obsession... All things Trains. He loves Thomas the tank'n engine, but really any trains will do. He is completely obsessed with his new train set, courtesy of grandma and grandpa for his upcoming birthday. He literally spends hours EVERY.SINGLE.DAY playing with it. I have never seen such great imaginitive play out of this boy. He is a riot. He frequently enlists Jason or myself to help him build a track with him. If you ever come over to our house, you too will likely be asked, "Come on, wanna play my trains with me?" A few Saturdays ago Jason and I spent a few hours with him in his room building and playing with this creation.

He really like using the blocks to build a "special tunnel"A few of the other highlights: The intersectionTab enjoying his trackAnd although it was annoying and frustrating at first, he has gotten very good at pulling all of the trains together.Here is another day of him playing with them. This time in the kitchen. There are frequently pieces of this train set lugged all over the house. We bought him a bin to keep them all in and luckily most nights before he goes to bed, he runs around picking them all up so that he can put is trains to "sleep" because they had "too much fun day" according to Tab.

Pinewood Derby

Jason recently participated in a pinewood derby. He had a lot of fun making his car with the limited tools he had. He really enjoyed getting creative with the windshield and the tailpipes. Now that the racing is over, the car is Tab's new favorite toy. Here it is getting ready to race. Everyone called it the Twinkie. Poor guy.And they're off.And everyone.Notice that I didn't talk about what place he got. Let's just say he won two heats... so he wasn't last or even next to last...

Easter!

We had such a fun Easter with the boys. We took Tab to an Easter Egg hunt that was held at Truman University on Saturday. I wasn't really planning on it being absolutely freezing so we headed out the door without hats, etc. Luckily Jason always wears this had and so Tab got lucky and didn't have to freeze his little ears off. Here he is with his loot. Can you tell he was freezing? A close up of the loot. I just love plastic eggs. I'm totally weird I know. I don't know what it is about them. Perhaps it's the bright, fun colors. Perhaps it's the sound they make clanking together. Perhaps it is that they can entertain small hands for quite some time. Oh wait, no, it is none of those things... I remember what it is. It is the same thing Tab loves about them... they are filled with candy. (Did I ever mention I have a candy addiction. It runs in the family)
While we were at Truman, they had their mascot out, so we stopped for a picture with the boys.
Tab was admiring his "golden eggs" as he likes to call them.
When we went home we dyed some of our own eggs. I think that Tab enjoyed this part the most. He had a hard time not checking the eggs every 10 seconds to see if they were "done".
Look how very carefully he was placing the eggs in the box. That didn't last long.
Just checking his eggs...again.

Ta-da! All done!Here is Sunday morning. He was following a trail of Easter eggs to find his basket. Don't you worry, I wasn't dumb enough to put candy in the ones leading up to his basket. It would have taken all day to get him there. (I learned that lesson last year)He found it! Can you tell he wasn't pleased about posing for a picture before digging into the basket?Here are the boys in their Easter outfits. I would have loved to have taken pictures outside in the beautiful sun, but it was SNOWING. Gag. I'm so ready to be done with the winter...I hope you really enjoy this one because it is nearly impossible to get a picture of Benton smiling because whenever he get excited and smiles, his hands go straight into his mouth.Hmmm.... I wonder if they are brothers?And a few more pics of them just because I can.

This one is just so that you can see what this poor child is going to have to put up with as he gets older. Those poor cowlicks.