7.26.2011

M is for Muffins


Jackson is quite the fan of breakfast and muffins have never been turned down.  Found this great recipe at Annie's Eats and just as I thought...he couldn't love them any more.  Superfan!  So here is the recipe:

Strawberry Banana MuffinsIngredients:
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
¾ cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries (cut into small pieces)
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
 (I used whole wheat flour)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a muffin pan with paper liners or grease with butter or cooking spray. Set aside.
In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, vanilla extract and mashed banana. Add the melted butter to the brown sugar mixture and stir to combine.
In another large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Gently fold in the strawberries, making sure they are coated with flour. This helps to prevent the berries from sinking during baking. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir only until the ingredients are just combined. Do not over mix the batter or tough muffins will result.
Fill each muffin cup about ¾ full of batter, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop. Fill any unused muffin cups halfway with water to prevent warping of the pan and/or overbrowning of the muffins. Place in the oven and bake until a tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Makes 12 regular sized muffins.  (I like to also make  mini muffins and freeze them for Jackson!)
YUMMM!!

7.25.2011

G is for Golf

Jackson's new obsession...GOLF!  He practices his swing everywhere, says the word at least 150x a day, and spots golf on the tv, on artwork or out the window of the car like a hawk.  I caught some of his practicing on camera finally so here are some pics of the next PGA tour star!

in action

concentrating very hard

Look at his form :)

Post game stretching

happy boy moment

7.21.2011

O is for Organization

I'm "trying" to organize something each week as I know Baby Lincoln will be here before we know it!  I'm also redoing the play room (new curtains, pillows, wall decor) to make it more KID friendly as before it was a room we showcased our golf art work collection and memorabilia.

1st new thing we added to the space is Jackson's new artwork he did today at a fun Mommy and Me Finger painting/Brush Painting class.  I am excited because one of the fabrics I have for the room has elephants on it! Perfect!!

By the end of our class today we were both covered in paint but here is the finished project:


I also decided to "label" Jackson's toy bins to help him learn how to put his toys away.  He is learning some new skills and I thought this would be a good one to add to the list and will be on our chore sticker chart when he is ready.  So far they are working great and he can help me in putting away his toys now :)


7.20.2011

13 Weeks

13 weeks with Lincoln
13 weeks with Jackson

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 13.5 Weeks
Size of baby:  a peach
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 2 pounds
Maternity Clothes: Regular pants & clothes, but getting more snug!
Gender: BOY
Name: Lincoln MacGregor
Movement: Felt a few flutters.
Sleep:  Having trouble getting to sleep!
What I miss: energy!
Cravings: Salad, crunchy food, spicy food
Symptoms: all day sickness still but only every few days, not every day
Best Moment this week:  End of last week finding out we were having another BOY!  And fantastic test results.  Baby is healthy and doing well so far!

7.19.2011

It's a Boy!

We found out this week that Baby #2 is a BOY!  Well, 95% sure anyway.  So, without further ado I introduce you to Lincoln MacGregor Davis at 12 weeks, 5 days in my belly:


Below is Jackson at 12 weeks, 1 day in my belly:

We are really excited also to say that all blood results came back fantastic for Lincoln in the 1st trimester screening so we are very happy about that.  No signs of any abnormalities and such.  He is measuring ahead a week just like Jackson was at this point.  Guessing we'll have another big boy on our hands.   Now for all the decorating, room shifting, organization...all that fun stuff that comes with family additions!

Silly Mornings

Here is a silly morning at our house.  PJs, diaper, train and Mommy's hair drying towel.  I mean, what gets better than this?!  I love the mornings with my silly little guy!  I don't always feel the best (STILL) in the mornings so smiles and giggles from Jackson are getting me through.  He reminds me ALL the time to not take things so seriously.




7.12.2011

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was itching to bake and came across this recipe.  I froze 2 dozen cookie balls for future cravings.  I made 1 dozen fresh and half are already gone.  I also used our new very large toaster oven to bake the small batch to save on energy too.  Good for the environment and good for my belly!

  • 2 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour, or regular whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1-2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts, optional



Combine flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl, whisk it together and set aside.
Combine brown sugar, granulated sugar and softened butter in the bowl of an electric mixer.
Beat until creamy, about 3 to 5 minutes.  Add vanilla extract.  Add eggs one at a time,
beating for 1 minute in between each addition.  Add dry ingredients all at once and mix well.
Fold in chocolate chips and nuts if using.


Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.
Drop cookie dough by the tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheet.













Place them very close together
so that as many cookies balls as possible fit on the tray.
Put the cookie sheet in the freezer and chill dough balls until frozen through, at least 3 hours.
Remove the sheet from the freezer and place dough balls in a freezer safe bag and place back
in the freezer until ready to bake.


When ready to bake cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Place frozen dough balls
 on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Leave a few inches in between the cookies,
 giving them room to spread.  Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or  until golden and irresistible.



Civilized Eater...well Sort of!

Jackson was NOT interested in using a fork or spoon for a long time.  We tried and tried but he enjoyed throwing, flinging, or playing with utensils instead of using them. He just wasn't ready like his other "mature" friends.  Lately, however, he will NOT eat without a utensil.  He'll even use our big adult size utensils with no problem.

So proud of my civilized eater.  Oh and he is getting "better" about bowls and plates too.  We even give him "real" plates...you know the breakable kind to try out.  He is actually better with those than he is the paper plates or plastic kiddie ones.






7.06.2011

Vegetable Pizza--YUMMO!

While this has lots of cheese on it, I still love it.  Pregnancy has caused me to not be SO strict on our constrained diet (obviously!).

Here is a recipe for Vegetable Pizza that is great to bring to summer parties as a snack/appetizer.  It was a big hit over the weekend with some friends so I thought I'd share.  My awesome mom used to make this a lot growing up and now I like to do the same!





Vegetable Pizza
2 tubes crescent dinner rolls
2 -8 oz. pkg. cream cheese
1 envelope  HVR dressing mix
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 cups chopped fresh vegetables
          (green pepper, carrot, broccoli, cauliflower,
            radish, green onion, etc.- use your favorites)
 
 
Press rolls (unrolled, flat, make to fit) into cookie sheet.
Bake about 10 min., until barely brown, cool.
Mix cream cheese, mayo, and Ranch dressing mix.
Spread over crust. Chop veggies. Spread over cheese layer and
Press down firmly. Top with cheddar. Cover and refrigerate
at least 2 hours.
You can use half recipe for a round pizza pan.

7.04.2011

11 Weeks with Baby #2

I'm stealing this format from a friend, but am going to try to take pictures with this pregnancy at the same stages as I did with Jackson for comparison and keep all my long distance friends up to date.

Carrying Jackson
Carrying Baby #2

Pregnancy Highlights:
How Far Along: 11 Weeks
Size of baby: Baby Davis is the size of a lime apparently
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 1-2 pounds
Maternity Clothes: Regular pants & clothes
Gender: ???
Movement: Felt a flutter or too last night.  Apparently you can recognize the movement earlier in 2nd pregnancies.
Sleep:  No issues...yet
What I miss: Feeling good. 
Cravings: Salad, crunchy food, spicy food...and last night it was Donuts!
Symptoms: the all day sickness
Best Moment this week:  having a couple days not feeling terrible and seeing some good signs that Jackson is going to be an amazing big brother! He is really, really affectionate right now and I hope it stays that way. When you ask him where the baby is, he points to my belly.
             

7.03.2011

Summer Fun! H is for "Houston" and "Hot"

We've been so busy since we got back from our vacation. Go, go, go- as Jackson says!

This past week we had a fun time with Holden & Liz, some of our favorite friends.  We decided to forego our normal park playdates and head for some A/C instead.  We headed over to Jumpalooza and the boys bounced to their hearts' content.  Then we grabbed some yummy lunch at Panera.  Here are some pics, courtesy of Liz, of our adventures.




Friday night we were able to meet up with our great friend Greg, who unfortunately is MILES away from his wife and 4 boys right now :(  .  Jackson kept him entertained and it was so great to see him.  Can't wait until my Fav Tyson gets back in town with all her boys.

Saturday we had some sprinkler fun with our neighbors Noah, Sarah and Stephen.  Noah and Jackson are great buds and have a blast together. Here are some pics to prove it.  It was a HOT one...so we cut it short and came in for a crab cake dinner and brownies for dessert!!