Back in the Saddle Again

Hello! Did you miss us?

We're back from our intense trip to Colorado! Paul and I spent our anniversary exploring the Denver area and hiking some mountains. I plan on doing a recap of our trip at some point here - once I organize and edit the HUNDREDS of photos I took while we were out there. In the mean time, I am currently haphazardly trying to get Matthew ready for his first day of Kindergarten next week. He will be away from me for eight hours, five days a week. I am simultaneously looking forward to it and dreading it at the same time. As for Matthew? He can't wait to go. He's counting down the days. Every morning he tells me how many days left until he leaves me (my phrasing, not his!).

In honor of the first day of school fast approaching, I will be doing a series on cookie recipes for school lunches. Matthew's favorite treat is a cookie. He could care less about cake, pies, cobblers, and puddings. Give the kid a cookie! When we selected a lunchbox for Matthew, I was already brainstorming healthy and indulgent homemade treats I could stuff in it. I know he'll probably end up taking PB&J and a handful of chips, but initially here I'm going to try to pack the kid some creative lunches. And every awesome school lunch has to include dessert! Matthew and I carefully perused through many different cookie recipes before he selected four types to bake and freeze for his school lunches.  At this point, I think we have enough cookies to last until mid-November. I'm looking forward to sharing those recipes with you in the coming days.

For now, I'm currently cleaning out our closets, donating many items to Goodwill, struggling to assemble a trike for Emma, and enjoying my littlest smiling cherub.

Smiling babies should actually be categorized by the pharmaceutical industry as a powerful antidepressant.

--Jim Gaffigan, Dad is Fat

I couldn't agree more! However, it's been very difficult trying to capture her smiling on camera. She'll be cooing and grinning from ear-to-ear, but as soon as someone whips the camera out she suddenly turns stoical. We have to be super stealthy about it and the two photos above are the best we have! I'm working on coaxing her out of her camera shyness.

Look for my back-to-school cookie recipe series coming up in the next couple of days!