Recipe :: Pineapple Infused Vodka

From time to time, mostly when we find a really great pineapple, do we think about making pineapple infused vodka. It's so easy and the final product is just delicious. Perfect for any summer drink! I've taken some snaps of the steps to show you how easy it can be to infuse vodka with whatever your little heart desires!

Things to note:
1. Obviously keep the empty vodka bottle
2. Between step 5 and 6 you need to wait one week
3. Feel free to use anything other than pineapple. The next thing I want to try is swedish fish!

Road Trip to Rehoboth Beach, DE

We had a great time last weekend at Rehoboth Beach, DE with Matt, Brittney and Harper!

The girls did great and got along really well, lol. It's the beginning of a lasting friendship! They loved the beach and lucky for us, neither of them put sand in their mouths!

The beach shade worked out very well once I got it together and facing the right direction! It's definitely going to come in handy for all future trips we take that involve being in the sun!

Looking forward to next year!

Rehoboth Beach on Dwellable

Road Trip to Richmond

Two weekends ago over Memorial Day, we took Scarlett's first road trip to Chesterfield, VA to visit Alex's family! We had a great time catching up with them and meeting Scarlett for the first time! If only we could've stayed longer!

We traveled Thursday night so that Scarlett could sleep in the car and she did a great job! We arrived in Chesterfield around 1:00 in the morning after about 5 hours in the car. She greeted Alex's aunt and uncle who were waiting up for us and soon after we set up the pack and play and hit the sack. She slept very well while we were there other than one night where she had some congestion. (Smaller babies go through the first couple months of their life only breathing through their nose, so if it gets stuffed up at all it's hard for her to breath right, so I spent a bunch of time suctioning! lol).

Friday we went to the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens where Alex's aunt and uncle got married. It was beautiful! What an awesome place to tie the knot! They had a butterfly exhibit which was awesome to see. So many butterflies just fluttering around. Alex got some great pictures of them! It was pretty hot that day but Scarlett did well covered in sun-screen. We picked Alex's cousin, Ellie up from school after the gardens and headed back to their house. His cousin Sam and Uncle were already home and Nick and Laurel arrived soon after. We had a yummy dinner of bbq chicken, the best pasta salad ever and yummy asparagus (and more). Then we had ice cream for dessert!! Soon it was time to put Scarlett to bed and I followed soon after her as I was pretty pooped from the short night of sleep the night before.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early, we headed to Laura's volleyball games for the day and then headed to Ellie's soccer game. When we got back to the house we had some time to kill so Scarlett and I went with Carl to the neighborhood pool while some of the others played tennis. I didn't get any pictures of this unfortunately but she had a blast! We were joined later by Ellie, Alex's Aunt and Uncle (Phil and Joan) and Laurel. Sometimes I wish I had a photographer following me around to document things I don't have time to document. After the pool we headed back and dinner was almost ready. We had the most delicious steaks I've ever tasted, a really yummy ravioli baked dish, more veggies followed by the best snickerdoodle cookies and some chocolate chip cookies for dessert! Hit the hay pretty early again, around 10pm.

Sunday morning we were up early again and headed off to Ellie's soccer game first followed by Laura's volleyball games. Going to volleyball tournaments really makes me miss playing that competitively. But I have a great time watching! After her games some of the group went to the mall and some of us went back to the house. We relaxed for a while until it was time to head to dinner. We went to MeKong which if you're ever in Richmond, check it out. Awesome thai food and a great beer selection. They had Leffe Brune (which is pretty hard to find) and I was pumped. Scarlett for one reason or another did not like the restaurant AT ALL so when the food came she was crying too much for me to feel comfortable having her in there, potentially ruining other peoples dining experience, so I went out to the car. She was completely fine once I got out there and we had fun laughing and playing for a while. Alex came out eventually and took over so I could go eat. They had really delicious food and I got to take some home for breakfast the next morning, yum!

Monday morning we got all packed up and ready to go. We timed our leaving with Scarlett's first nap, even though it didn't last very long. She was in and out of naps the whole way home and drank a couple bottles, most likely for comfort. It was a lot for her I think, having to stay in one position for so long. But she did well. It was heaven to be home when we arrived. We unpacked and Alex mowed the lawn. Then we spent time together as a little family. It's amazing how much I missed Scarlett sometimes while other people were holding her, even though I could see her, I still missed her. Hard to explain. But we had a great time! And we can't wait to see everyone again at the beach!!

Scarlett :: 4 months!

Can't believe this little one is 4 months old! It feels like she's been with us for way longer and yet, she's still just our little baby girl! She's changed so much since her birthday back on January 20th! We haven't had her official 4 month appointment yet, so these are approximates until then when I'll update this with the real stats.

Stats (approx)

Weight: 18 lbs (7 lb 5 oz at birth)
Length- 27" (20.5" at birth)

Update: Real Stats at 4.5 months old
Weight: 17 lbs 1 oz
Length: 25 3/4"

Details
Eating: She still eats every two hours during the day, about 4 oz or so at a time. And wakes up once or twice at night to eat. Not much has changed in this area. We're going to delay introducing solids to her for the time being. We will re-evaluate this at 5 months.

Sleeping: She is a little cat napper! When put down to nap, she won't sleep longer than 40 minutes but her norm is about 20. She does, however, sleep for over an hour if someone is holding her. This means she takes about 5-6 naps a day. She's relatively consistent. She always takes a morning nap about an hour or so after she wakes up followed by an early afternoon nap around 11 or 12, another afternoon nap around 2, another around 4 and then another around 6. She then goes to bed around 8pm. In month three until month four she had been waking up twice a night, maybe 3 or 4 times during that month she would only wake up once. Now that she's four months, she is starting to be more consistent with only waking once but I am still up another time to put her pacifier in so that she'll go back to sleep. But it's progress! Like I said, she goes to bed around 8pm and usually sleeps until 7:30 or 8:00am. She sleeps on her tummy like she has been for a couple months now, this helps her to not startle herself out of sleep but transferring her from arms to crib can be challenging!

Activity/Skills: Whew, she made some big leaps in month three. She started sitting in her bumbo and at first she was a little slouchy but now is a pro! She rolled over for the first time while I was in the shower but now consistently rolls from her back to her tummy. She hasn't mastered from tummy to back yet, but that's actually a good thing, I don't need her knowing how to roll all over her crib just yet! She props herself up well on her arms when doing tummy time and loves to grab at her toys and shove them into her mouth. Sometimes her aim is off but she keeps working at it! If we put her on one end of the activity mat with a toy she wants on the other end she will get there. She scoots and trys to get her knees under her body so I'm sure this is the beginning stages for crawling. She is a mover and a shaker! My parents gave us a little car that she can sit in and push around with her feet. She loves it! She scoots all around in that thing! She is definitely not a sit still for long kind of girl which will surely make her toddler years fun (and probably tiring). She likes to sit in our dining room and look out at the backyard and she likes to take walks around the backyard and around the neighborhood in her stroller! She is a very smiley little girl and she likes to laugh. She follows us around when she's sitting still and we're moving around the room. She definitely knows who her mommy and daddy are when she's in a group of people which melts our hearts. It feels like she's growing up so fast because she can do all of these new things in such a short amount of time! Soon, we will start teaching her baby sign language, which she won't be able to sign back right away but will know what they mean when we do them. Then once she perfects her fine motor skills, she'll be able to sign back at us! How cool is that!?

Other: Let's see, what else. She will get some shots at her upcoming appointment, and we're not really looking forward to those but we gotta do what we gotta do. I'm looking to buy a glider if anyone has one for sale? I used one this past weekend at Alex's Aunt's house in Richmond and it was awesome! Our rocking chair is good but it can't hurt to have both, right? :) We're headed to the beach soon for Scarlett's first beach trip and we already know she loves the bath so she'll love pools and swimming and hopefully the beach and the water! This summer is going to be a fun one!

Scarlett, you are a beautiful and fun little girl. We love you so much and it just keeps growing every day. You honestly don't know how much love your heart can hold until you have a child. Our hearts are practically bursting at the seams daily. We savor the little moments we have with you as a little family of three. You're the best thing we've ever done and we can't wait to guide you through life and see where it takes you! ♥

Play date!

We got together with two of our favorite couples a couple weeks ago and I remembered to get out the camera and take some snaps! It's going to be so fun watching these three little beauties grow up together!

10 Things :: Volume 6

Jumping right in..

10 :: The cats. Their winter hair is shedding and our one particular kitty, Domino basically refuses to groom himself properly which has resulted in an enormous amount of mats, mostly on his back leg area. So I have resorted to cutting them out. This makes for a very weird looking cat. Alex and I really want to get his hair buzzer and just buzz his whole body, minus his head but I don't know how well he'll tolerate it but really, something has to be done. Ugh!

9 :: I got my legs waxed last Wednesday by my sister, Nicole. All seemed fine except that I sweated a lot over the weekend while outside in the heat (duh) and now they're irritated. Gah!

8 :: Revenge.. the show. Can you believe the season ended like that? First of all, I didn't know there was going to be an episode 22, so I was surprised to see that but glad because then we could find out what happened to Nolan, obv they couldn't kill him. I kind of wish she would've killed the white haired guy, then he couldn't have blown up the plane! I'm surprised they killed Victoria, unless she's not really dead? Won't they need to keep her around for flashbacks at least? Season two is going to be awe-some. Alex said he kind of wished they would've killed off Daniel at the engagement party, but I think they took it in the right direction. In order for a season two to work, she still needs to want revenge, which now she does, plus her mom? Wow! They could take that in so many directions!

7 :: Scarlett is definitely ticklish in her belly. It is hilarious to make her laugh. We need to get it on camera here soon so that we have it! Her laugh is infectious!

6 :: We bought this coleman beach shade for our upcoming beach trips! We cannot wait to try it out when it arrives on Thursday. It will also be perfect to sit in the yard and watch Alex in the garden or the birds at the water bath! I also plan to get her a little inflatable swimming pool for this summer. She loved the pool at Richmond so much so why not get a little one here she can splash around in this summer and keep cool!

5 :: Father's Day is coming up, I need to get on my planning for Alex's gift that Scarlett and I are going to make. Oh pinterest, you are too awesome!

4 :: I've decided I'm going to do push-ups and the plank plus take a walk everyday starting today. Yesterday evening I did push-ups and the plank and thought that it's a good way to keep moving this summer, even if it's hot outside! Scarlett will enjoy the walks as well so it's a win win! Maybe i'll get up some courage to do some interval training with C25K as well!

3 :: The Lancaster Farm Fresh Coop that we're a part of has been giving us some yummy greens. We've made kale chips twice and lots of other fresh veggies including strawberries. The fruit share starts this week and I can't wait to make this recipe next time we get strawberries. Alex's garden has also been producing some yummy foods including broccoli and sugar snap peas!

2 :: Volleyball has started back up and I'm super excited about it! I love playing and I love my teammates and it's so fun to play! Thank goodness for them!

1 :: Summer is officially here. I feel like after Memorial Day weekend, it's official summer. Not to mention the hot hot weather we've been having. I can't wait for the cookouts and the bonfires and swimming at the pool and spending time with family and friends, going to the beach and going to the mountains and showing Scarlett what summer is all about!

Mother's Day Photoshoot

Check out these sweet images we took while we were enjoying the great outdoors in the beautiful weather on Mother's Day. (this was around 10:30am, after we'd been up since about 7:30!)

Mothers Day via iPhone

Waffles for Breakfast! Only the best!

Fresh picked Roses from the bush outside! (from Scarlett)

Fresh picked Iris from outside! (from Alex)

Little bit of fuss.. excuse my face please! :)

Homemade stromboli for lunch!

Some champagne with a splash of Peach Mango V8 splash! Yum!

I have some more pictures to share from our actual camera in our little backyard photo shoot which i'll put into another post!

My first official Mother's Day was very nice. Very relaxing! Alex made homemade waffles for breakfast, I snuggled a lot with Scarlett and held her most times she napped (other than her morning nap), we laid outside under a tree for a while, Alex made stromboli for lunch which was delicious!, we popped some bubbly, I made risotto for dinner and Alex added in some collards for good measure, we relaxed indoors and played with Scarlett all day.

Scarlett has been teething, or whatever the beginning stages of teething are so she wasn't happy all the time. We wanted to go take a walk somewhere but the logistics were difficult to plan around Scarlett's cat nap schedule, or non-schedule really. So relaxing at home was the best idea and we took full advantage.

I hope everyone who is a mother or a mother to be had a fantastic day filled with love!

10 Things + 1 :: Volume 5

11. The Lancaster Farm Fresh Coop starts this week. I am so excited to see what we get! We got half of a veggie share and a fruit share. Yum yum yum, organic and fresh and healthy. Perfect for making baby food, am i right? Speaking of baby food.. we got some asparagus seconds from the farm yesterday and I'm definitely going to use some of it to make baby food to freeze now, since asparagus won't be in season when Scarlett will start eating it. I have a feeling she's going to love it!

10. I'm currently obsessed with a new salad that Britt introduced me to almost a month ago now. It's called an Oriental Chicken Salad (i think?) and it is delish. I've since took it a couple of places to share and it got great reviews. I'll post the recipe soon!

9. Super excited for some upcoming trips! First to Richmond to see family and watch some volleyball and soccer. Scarlett is super pumped to meet her aunts, uncles and cousins! And then to Rehoboth Beach with friends where Scarlett will put her feet (and probably hands) in the sand for the first time. I hope none of it ends up in her mouth but who am i kidding? I'm sure it will.

8. Honestly, I'm regretting not getting the iPhone 4S.. just for the camera. The camera on the 4 is fine but I take so many pictures with my phone that the 4S would've been worth it. Oh well, next upgrade is in December, looks like i'm either getting the 4S or waiting a little bit longer for a potential iPhone 5!

7. Hoping for good weather for both of those trips above!! The weather this year so far has been interesting to say the least. No snow or really any super cold weather, which has been nice. I hope it gets warm and stays warm soon. The flip flopping and not knowing whether to wear a coat in the morning is getting a little old.

6. Scarlett will turn 4 months on the 20th and I'll do a whole post on it but one big thing she did a couple weeks ago was she rolled over! First huge milestone accomplished! We also hope that at her 4 month dr appointment we'll be able to start some kind of solids. Maybe then she'll consistently sleep longer at night!? :)

5. Alex got a charcoal grill for his birthday and let me just say, food cooked on a charcoal grill really does taste better. It's kinda crazy but so so yummy. Alex is looking for any and every opportunity to use it. I see lots of backyard cookouts in our future for this summer!

4. Post baby bod update. The weight is coming off.. slowly but surely. I'm trying not to rush it but the last couple of weeks I've been trying to eat healthier and that killer salad in #10 has been helping! I try to take walks on my days off with Scarlett and starting this week I'm going to try to get a pilates sesh in everyday. My core is definitely in need of some toning.

3. Speaking of post baby bod.. I'm gonna need some new swim suits for this year. More mom-appropriate but also stylish. I think I might have to search pinterest for this. These days I search pinterest for everything!

2. Mothers day is this coming weekend! My first official, baby outside the womb mothers day, since last mothers day I was pregnant but didn't know it. We're excited to spend the day together doing lots of fun things! A yummy breakfast, maybe a picnic lunch.. fun!

1. This blog design still needs a lot of work and I'm working on it when I get a chance. I need to look into the coding of some other blogs I follow to see how they get things arranged so nicely because I don't really like the spacing on the right between the different pages. I should really just hire someone for a new design.. I'll be pondering that now.

Life after Baby :: Working

I've been back to work now for 8 weeks at the end of this week. What?

My baby will be 16 weeks old on Friday. Double what?

Time is moving so fast now that I'm back at work. I have so much to do at work that the days fly by and before I know it, I'm home again, settling down for the evening.

It's staying lighter later which is great for some things and bad for others. After returning home from work we have about 3 good hours until we lay the little one down and unwind for the night ourselves. Three hours isn't really enough but somehow, it is.

I love my half hour lunch breaks where I have just enough time to eat and write a blog post, or read some blogs, or catch up on perezhilton (less and less these days). I try to get these things done while Scarlett is napping at home, but her naps never last long enough for me to get anything done and our home computer is getting slower and slower. Not to mention, computer time falls behind cleaning time and laundry time.

But before I know it, she will be 6 months old and then she'll be crawling and then walking and then talking and then I'll wonder how she was ever so tiny. Tiny enough to fit neatly inside my body. I both dread and look forward to those days. It's a delicate balance I guess.

I'm thankful that I can work part time currently and spend a couple days a week caring for sweet Scarlett. I wouldn't trade that time for anything in the world. When she smiles at me (and she does so quite often), it melts my heart in a giant puddle of love.

So I guess since I can't slow time down.. I'll continue filling it with all the moments I hope to remember forever.

iPhone Photo Adventures v3

Left to Right and Top to Bottom

A birthday gift Alex recieved from his buddy Dan, love the BLL!

Tayden! Steph sent me this picture of the outfit we got her. She is the cutest strawberry ever!

Baby blue eyes staring me down.

Sitting on Daddy's lap when he got home from work.

Happy Birthday to Alex!

Peaceful sleeping baby.

A half smile for me.

Just chillin with our hood up, laying on our tummy.

Asleep after some hardcore activity mat time.

Tiny lips pursed while on the changing table.

Half death stare. Tired of the pictures I'm sure!

Samsung smart tv. More of a want. Saw it at Sears and snapped a pic to remember it.

I take all my photos with my iPhone and edit them using Instagram. Follow me! mbru15!

(Tid bit I just learned. To edit but not post to instagram, work in Airplane mode!)

Stay tuned for the upcoming iPhone Video Adventures!

That time I became a photo editor

Working with photoshop at work has given me lots of experience in editing.
So much so that I took on a challenge from my sister in law, Laurel, to edit some of her wedding photos. 

Below are the before and afters. Can you spot the differences?? :)

(The before's are on the right)

And I decided to throw in one that I did for work.

I really like working in Photoshop (and Photoshop Elements).
These sorts of projects present a challenge to me and it's fun to take them on and see what I can do!

I'm sharing this because I've added myself to The Usic and I will be offering these services on there soon!
Thought it would be a fun way to share a hobby with others!

Baby Praying Mantis

The other day, Alex found a Praying Mantis nest in the yard and took some pictures of the babies. He had to zoom in really close. It's crazy how small they start out!

Easter Pictures

Here are some pictures from Easter. Obviously super late but I finally got around to editing them! :)

Scarlett :: 3 Months!

Friday was Scarlett's 3 months of life anniversary! She is growing and changing daily and it's so exciting to watch!

Stats (approx)
Weight- 16 lbs (7 lbs 5 oz at birth)
Length- 25" (20.5" at birth)

Details 
Eating- She is still a little piglet in this category. She eats about 4oz give or take every 2 hours or so. It still feels like I'm nursing her all the time when I'm home but that's probably normal. She still spits up a decent amount, in fact this morning she projectiled 3 times in a row and basically emptied her tummy of everything she had just ate.. Tmi?

Sleeping- She takes her first nap about an hour after waking. How long this nap lasts is anyone's guess. As I type she has been sleeping for about 50 minutes and it's probably bc I have her sound sheep on. Her 2nd nap isn't as predictable but it's usually around noon. She takes a 3rd nap around 3 or 4 depending on the days activities and she takes a cat nap in the evening around 6 sometimes. We try to put her to bed at 8:30.. So we start the routine around 8. Sometimes she doesn't go down until 9.. It's not an exact science. She wakes twice to eat at night. This ranges from evening to evening. Her longest stretch ever is 5.5 hrs.

Activity/Skills- She constantly sucks on her hands. We just know she's going to be a 'taste everything' child. This will probably include dirt and maybe sand. I'll do my best to block it but no promises can be made. She loves laying on her activity mat in the morning watching the lights and listening to the music, that's usually when we have the radio on as well. On the mat is also where she does some talking and laughing. She'll lay there for a good 10 min by herself which lets me get things done around the house quick or make breakfast. She's in 3-6 month clothing now so there's lots of new fun outfits to wear. The changing table is her favorite place to be next to the bath, so changing her clothing is a good time! She really enjoys carrying on a conversation with cooing and it's the cutest thing to see. Her smiles and giggles melt my heart every time!

Enjoy her most recent pictures below! :)

Previous Posts:

1 Month

2 Months

Life after Baby :: Social Life

Quick nap at the Doutrich's

Now I know what it's like to have a dialed back social life. Admittedly though, prior to having Scarlett, I wasn't really the best at having a social life either but having a baby makes it far more difficult.

Sleeping at Iron Hill

I thought I would be the mom who didn't leave the house for 4 straight weeks. Granted, I still felt that way around week 2 when breastfeeding was still getting the best of me. Soon after that, we were invited to a super bowl party and wanted to go. By that point, being in the house was getting a little bit old. Watching the seasons of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice and Revenge were getting boring. Sure we had been out to go to the Doctor's offices but that wasn't fulfilling enough. So off to the super bowl party we went. We had a great time! Scarlett behaved so well (she slept through most of it). I felt far less self conscious about nursing her in someone elses house. I used my hooter hider thingy and it went well. Soon enough we would be traveling to the grocery store, Alex's parents, my parents, my grandma's houses, friends houses and it worked out fine. We were finally mobile, albeit she was riding with two parents in the car, more on that in the next Life after Baby post.

Sleeping at the McHenry's

I also thought I would be the mom who was paranoid about germs. Of course, if someone is sick or thinks they are sick, we refrain from having them hold her.. that's common sense. But we don't have people constantly washing their hands when they're around her. It's not like people are putting their germy hands into her actual mouth and she just recently started putting her own hands in her mouth which I'm sure are also germy (and lint filled, wha whaat?). This is going a little off topic from our social life so I'll get back to it.

Needless to say, we do less than we used to. Our weekends are a little more open but we like that time to relax as a family. Especially since we hit the sack around 9pm every night. But Scarlett seems to do well in all environments but is definitely the most comfortable at home. I think she's going to be a pretty laid back little girl which will be nice.

With all that said, if you haven't met Scarlett yet and you want to.. call us! We're usually free!