Whoopie Pies

Dessert in general is a wonderful, wonderful thing. Portable desserts are extra wonderful, because you can indulge almost anywhere. Now, the cupcake is hard to beat when it comes to portable desserts, but I have another secret dessert love. The whoopie pie. This creme-filled cake delight is perfection. Last year, I found a recipe for Strawberry Whoopie Pies from the guys of Baked. It was the most amazing treat in the world. D couldn't believe his taste buds. It was rich and decadent. You wanted to eat more than one due to the luscious strawberry taste ... but you knew you couldn't. (They really are rich!)

The current issue of Food Network Magazine includes a Red Velvet Whoopie Pie recipe. I think I have gone to food heaven. K and I will be making them this weekend, and I cannot wait. The recipe looks easier than the traditional red velvet cake recipe I use (though, that is some divine cake.) And when you have a mini chef helping, you know you can't go wrong.

The one thing I noticed about both these recipes is that they are featured as Valentine's Day treats. Which brings me to the question - what is it about whoopie pies that correlate with Valentine's Day? Is it that they are so yummy (and a bit of a time commitment) that you only want to make them for those you really love? Perhaps. Or maybe it's that the yummy creme-filled center and spongy cakes are the pinnacle of love as food. And let's be honest, they get their name because that's what you want to yell as you bite into one!

The Woes of Leave (A venting moment)

In the past year, my employer made the move to transition administration of its leave of absence process to a third party named Hewitt. Hewitt is renowned in the HR world for really knowing their stuff - and being experts and awesome executors. When the corporation decided to make this move, I think everyone believe it really was the smartest decision they could make. Give the job to someone who will do it really, really well.

Hmmm ... now that I am currently going through the process, I think everyone was tricked. It has been anything but smooth. It took them two weeks to send me the paperwork to try to get it signed by doctor confirming that I had given birth. In the meantime, they said they would call to try to expedite the process. I would never hear back from them if they had gotten a hold of anyone and so I would constantly be calling ... because let's face it, it regarding me getting paid. Maybe it's not a big deal to them if someone else misses there paycheck, but as the sole income earner for my family, and thinking about the impending large medical bills that result from having a baby in the NICU, I sort of need everyone of my paychecks that is due to me.

I vented on Facebook about how the process wasn't going smoothly. A scary result. Everyone else who works for the same employer who has recently been on leave started to admit their horror stories. Everyone was having issues. Frankly, Hewitt is dropping the ball and our corporate mega employer doesn't seem to be moving too quickly to correct it. In fact, I sent a formal written complaint via email and the response I received back from our own internal people perfectly illustrated that they just wanted to pass the buck back to Hewitt and weren't taking personal accountability. These are people's lives and livelihoods. Really, we can't be laissez-faire about this.

Then, what aggravated me more was yesterday I receive an email from my boss. She was forwarding me Hewitt's notice to here. They email stated that my return to work date was Jan. 31. This is the date my short-term-disability (physically recuperating from the act of giving birth) would be over, but I had told Hewitt that I intended to take another six weeks under FMLA (um ... which I believe is my legal right ...) and that I would be supplementing those days with my reserve of vacation - which I had been saving for a year so that I could get an almost completely paid leave. Fortunately, a peer of mine is also on leave, so my boss was able to compare that her leave request was processed correctly and mine wasn't.

So, now I'm about to make another call to Hewitt, where I will probably receive poor service (as has been the case the five other times I've had to call them) and they will make me feel like I am putting them out. I mean, god forbid, why am I concerned about getting paid? Why do I actually want to take time off to celebrate the life of my newborn child? Why do I want to make sure that my legal rights are actually taken into consideration?

I've been having serious thoughts about my future and determining what is best for my employment now that I am the single income earner. This is a serious topic considering I've been at my current employer for almost ten years. It's a lot of loyalty and commitment I've made to them. Unfortunately, the handling of my leave is putting a few check marks into the "reasons to start looking elsewhere" column.

TV, Tons of TV

Okay, one thing that leave does to me that is very, very dangerous: allows me to discover new television shows. Thanks to the fabulous invention of the DVR, my television watching had become pretty prescribed. I had a standard set of shows that I squeezed into the 90 minutes of evening time I had available. Didn't stray and only discovered new shows if they were highlighted in US Weekly.

Now, that I'm home all day and we're basically home bound with O until April, I have been introduced to many new shows (primarily during the afternoon when both kids are sleeping and in the middle of the night.) I'm addicted to the baby shows on Discovery Health. I don't know why I find it comforting to watch other people deliver babies, but I do. And yes, I have definitely shed a tear or two during some of their stories. But there are a few other delicious finds I have discovered. Now, I'm warning you, these are not necessarily quality shows. They've just sucked me in to some degree.

Pawn Stars - it's on the History Channel. I don't know how I happened to trip on this show, but it's a reality show that's actually educational! It follows the adventures of a family run pawn shop and the history of the items that people bring in to sell, trade or pawn. Of course, there's some fun family hijinks thrown in for entertainment value, but the neat stuff is when you see the "experts" discuss how authentic certain items are. I also enjoy watching the shop owners negotiate prices with the people. There are definitely some people who give in too easily. My favorite was watching how you discern a real Rolex from a fake one. Episodes are also available on OnDemand. It's a must watch.

Guiliana & Bill - Remember, I said it's not about the quality. This little reality treat is found on the Style network, but repeats are also aired on E. It follows skinny as a twig E! celebrity Guiliana and winner of the first Apprentice Bill in their happy married family. This season follows them as they go on the grueling adventure of trying to have a baby. I honestly am surprised that I have gotten sucked into this show, because I didn't really watch Jessica or Nick and I only half-heartedly have paid attention to the world of Tori and Dean. But there's something about Guilie and Bill that makes me intrigued.

And of course I have all the old faithfuls that warmingly greet me in my DVR menu every day. The new season of Project Runway has begun. It always takes me a few weeks to get invested in the designers. So far, I don't have a favorite, but I am astonished that Ping has made it through two weeks!! Biggest Loser hasn't captivated me this season like it has in the past. (I know it's bad when I keep falling asleep and have to ask D who got kicked off.) Does it really have to be two hours?? Oh, I could go on and on forever. The only TV wish I have is for them to quit airing High School Musical 3 during the wee hours (between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m.) on Encore. The movie has been on every day I swear for the last few weeks, and if it weren't for my DVR or OnDemand, I think I'd go crazy by now from having to watch it too many times!

Butterball

My little men already have each other's backs. Okay, more precisely, K is already very much a big protective brother. D preceded to tell me that the mega protein shakes that we've been feeding O (aka breast milk fortified with special preemie formula per the pediatrician) are definitely working because he's become a chubby baby. Of course, anyone who's seen their baby super skinny in the NICU incubator waits for the day that they consider their baby chubby. So, anyway back to the original thought. When K heard his dad call his brother "a butterball," he quickly came to his defense.

"Do not call my brother a butterball!" It made us laugh and I commended K for having his brother's back and making sure that no one teases him, including his daddy. This then affirmed for K that he was in fact the greatest big brother ever. It will be interesting to watch them both grow and see how they continue to form their relationship throughout the years. Will they be competitive? Will they be supportive? What will be the things that draw them closer or distance them? I know that D and I hope that they grow into the best of friends and cultivate a kinship that is solid. We'll try to foster it as much as we can, but know that we also need to give them the room to develop the relationship on their own.

Speaking of my littlest man. It's hard to believe that my due date is technically still two days away and yet, here he is five weeks old. He's smiling back at us now (of course, I think he actually smiles at D more than me, I'll attribute it to that maybe he thinks daddy is funnier looking.) And he's degree of cooing indicates that he will probably be as much of a chatterbox as his big brother. My house will never be quiet again. Never. Well... at least not for another 18 years!

Four Weeks Down

Yes, the first four weeks of my maternity leave are already gone. It's amazing how fast it goes. How when the days blur and you don't even know what day of the week it is without stopping to pause, that time can just slip away so quickly.

We've now established something that resembles a regular routine. I'm back to being able to accomplish getting all my laundry done on Sundays -- even with the extra loads a newborn creates. The waking every three hours has finally become enough of a routine that it doesn't really rack the body too much anymore, you're just in a constant state of tired.

This week I'm also starting to go out a little and reconnect with the world that I quickly abandoned on December 20 with out warning. I had breakfast with three gal pas on Saturday. It was nice to go out, savor a savory omelet and just chat with women for a bit. Tomorrow I'll be passing along some of my pregnancy books to a friend who is having her first child this summer. And on Wednesday, I'll be seeing a work friend in the evening. What better way to catch up on what I've missed the last four weeks in the realm of office gossip. (Seriously, our department expanded and we moved into a different area of the company while I've been out. Two people have left and based on a tiny glimpse from a comment from one of my friends on Saturday, it sounds like things aren't going the way I'd want them to in other areas. And it's only been four weeks!!)

So, I have eight weeks left. I am looking forward to them. I know they'll go by terribly fast, and I'll be returning to work before I know it. Here's to enjoying every minute of the future.

Mr. Crocker

Having a husband who's job is a stay-at-home-dad has many pros. But one that I was not expecting was that my husband would turn into Mr. Crocker. Earlier this week while he was making dinner at the end, he whipped out a pan of fresh, made-from-scratch, brownies. Now, the fact that he did this on its own is amazing ... but they were absolutely the most delicious brownies I've ever tasted. Better than any other brownie. I would have eaten the whole pan if I had been home alone.

This morning, due to my needing to cater to a screaming three-year-old in the middle of the night, I was plum exhausted and he graciously took O's 6 a.m. feeding. At 9, I stirred awake and realized that K was still sleeping, too. We walked downstairs, and were greeted by a batch of freshly baked muffins - again, completely from scratch. I don't know how he finds the time to do the baking. (Okay, if I chose to use my time between feedings to not surf the Internet, organize the office or take a nap, I could probably bake, too).

Ah ... it's nice being married to someone who likes to bake and cook as a way to relax and feel accomplished. I can't wait to see what else is in store for us. I just hope that I don't gain weight during my leave!

Sleep Deprivation

Okay, perhaps it's because I'm a little bit older this time, or maybe it's the extra energy needed to entertain a three-year-old ... I cannot believe how tired I am with the round-the-clock baby tending. I'm lucky, because D and I split the evening feedings and he takes first shift and I take second (because we have to fortify my milk with formula, it's bottles for O for now). So, I can usually get in a five hour marathon sleep at night if I'm lucky. And maybe that's the problem. Because I can tease my body with a little more than a two-hour nap, it feels the deprivation at a whole different level.

D's best friend had triplets last year, and we asked them how did they ever get any sleep. The response: "we didn't!" I think because K was able to breastfeed straight from the source maybe it wasn't as bad. Because now, I do a small attempt so that O has some familiarity with me, but then I have to sit and attach myself to the pump. Yes, there's nothing to make you feel more like a mammal than attaching yourself to a milk-pumping machine. I've course, I'm of the thought that if it's best for my baby, I will definitely do it. But, if I had time and energy, I think I'd try to invent a pump that made you feel more gratified about the task at hand. Maybe one that shouts out words of encouragement every five minutes.

Alas, this is just one of the first of many things that I will do for O.

Germs, Germs, Germs

Based on doctor's recommendations, we have postponed visitors for the first month of O's arrival and have basically agreed to keep him away from crowded places like the grocery store for at least three months. (Okay, I'm banking on getting our groceries delivered saving us money, so it may be a forever lifestyle change ... if I'm lucky.)

I was perusing the Web tonight looking up information on premature babies and other precautions and I found it interesting that some people were shocked that parents want others to wash their hands before holding their baby. When K was two months old and I brought him to work, I absolutely demanded that anyone who wanted to touch him go and wash their hands. I didn't even think about it being a freaky demand or out of the ordinary. And with O, I want to be even more cautious. ... I'm being tugged away from the computer by my three-year-old, more later!

Welcoming the New Year - Exhaustion and All

2009 was a year full of ups and downs that I hadn't been expecting - becoming a single income family, loads of work stress, and the biggest up (that included some downs) the birth of my second son five weeks premature. The next biggest up was that we got to welcome him home still in 2009. Now, it's lots of exhausted evenings, daytime catnaps and ensuring that we are showering both of our boys with lots of love.

I'm looking forward to 2010 being a year of opportunity, promise and maybe tackling some goals. I need to determine what these goals are first. I know one thing is that I want it to be a year more focused on family, and enjoying every milestone of our second son. I think sometimes this can be lost when you have another child. But K is an exceptional child, and I think he will help us celebrate many of O's milestones. It will also be interesting to see if O's development is true to his adjusted gestational age or if he's on track as though he didn't decide to surprise us all before Christmas.

This year we are registering K for preschool. It's hard to believe that he's grown up so fast. D and I both really focus on making sure our child has been able to enjoy his childhood, with the right amount of encouragement versus pushing him to do too many things. (Sometimes we are more successful than others.) Every day, the kid amazes me more with what he can do. Of course, he's had a few bouts of jealousy with this new brother around, and wants as much mommy time as he can have (meaning very rare mommy alone minutes).

And D, he's been a great partner in the whole adventure of the past year. True, he was the cause of some of the strain, but I don't think I could get through it with someone different. We balance each other out. And when we fight, we tend to know it will be over in less than 24 hours ... and sometimes what the disagreements are about are so ridiculous (just ask my sister.)

Yes, I'm hopeful for the year ahead. I hope everyone has a great 2010 with the right balance of challenges and opportunities.