Local Yogurt

Yesterday I finally treated myself to Local Yogurt, a new-ish frozen yogurt company in Durham. I was delightfully surprised to see a giant buffet of delicious toppings, though very few flavors of frozen yogurt. After reading the company's Web site I discovered that they will always only offer 4 flavors of yogurt. Their staple flavor will be original (plain), and they will rotate through a supply of three others. Yesterday they were offering original, chocolate, lemon and peanut butter. They use toppings from Parker & Otis, Dolly Mama, Melvin's Gardens, and Fosters.
I was EXTREMELY pleased with my selection of original-flavored yogurt topped with both Thin Mint cookie crumbles and broken toffee bits. My small-sized cup was actually quite large and filling – and I have the appetite of an elephant.
I am 100% sure that I'll be returning to Local Yogurt for seconds....and thirds, fourths, and fifths.

I'm a chef!

I would never have imagined that I might one day call myself a chef. But folks, I am indeed just that.
I have recently begun cooking Caleb homemade baby food. By cooking, I mean selecting which organic fruits and vegetables he will eat, dicing them, steaming them, pureeing them, and then freezing them in ice cube trays.
I realize that I don't really qualify to be called a chef based on the skills required to make baby food, but yet I feel like a gourmand every time I make a new baby food puree. So far I have made a tray of each of the following: apples, sweet potatoes, bananas, and carrots.
The recipes are stripped down to the bare minimum of ingredients for 6-month-olds and in about a month or so I can start making him much more creative dishes. I hope that I continue to be motivated in making his baby food, as it is much cheaper than store bought baby food jars and helps reduce waste.
I owe so much to my friend Jeni who inspired me to do this.

Caleb is about to be introduced to sweet potatoes.

Daddy goes in with a spoonful.

Can't you just hear Caleb saying, "Seriously guys, what is this stuff?"

Best seat in the house

On a recent trip to Target, hubby and I decided to put Caleb in the big boy seat of a shopping cart. He was by far too small for the front seat, so we got the bright idea to prop diapers that we had no intention of buying all around him – one pack behind him and one on each side. Worked like a charm!

Determination

For Christmas Caleb received a set of "nesting" balls from his Uncle Chris and Aunt Sue. They stack, they rattle, and they are multi-colored. They are everything a five-month-old boy could ever want.

Now that Caleb is sitting up fairly well he is eager to test the waters by reaching out and grabbing toys around him.

I am amazed at how often he is successful in grabbing said toys. But I guess that shows just how badly Caleb wants them in his mouth.

Sometimes he tips over while reaching for these toys. Once again, his strength is remarkable. He can catch himself and sit himself back upright.

His eyes are on the prize. This kid is forming opinions quickly and he knows what he wants.

And when he doesn't get what he wants there's a price to pay.

Photo of the Day

I'm 95 percent sure this is not how a doorway jumper is supposed to be used. Caleb hasn't quite gotten the hang of it. We trust that he'll grow into this lovely contraption.

Dinner Party

Last night Hubby and I hosted a dinner at our house for some dear friends who will soon be leaving Durham for Boston. They will be greatly missed. As usual, Hubby plans and prepares the entire meal, while I am in charge of dessert, menu design and cleaning.

First Course: Potato Gnocchi, Sautéed Snow Peas, Cherry Tomatoes, Aged Balsamic Drizzle

The gnocchi was prepared in brown butter, otherwise known as heaven. The balsamic was aged 9 years. This dish was light and summery – makes me anxious for warmer weather.
Hubby puts forth a lot of effort for these dinners, making everything from scratch, including the pastas!


Second course: Duck Confit-stuffed House made Ravioli, Wilted Mustard Greens, Herbed Red Wine Sauce

This dish was the perfect combination of savory meat and bitter greens. The two flavors paired together wonderfully, and this was my first taste of mustard greens.
Also, when using wine in cooking it is ideal to use the same wine that you'll be serving during dinner. However, putting that into action doesn't always happen. It is absurd to cook with a $40 red wine. Hubby usually prepares food with an $8 to $10 bottle, and his dishes are the tastiest I've ever had. His theory is if you are cooking in advance of eating, which most people are, you wouldn't necessarily want that bottle of wine open for that long a period before serving it with dinner.

Third course: Herb Encrusted Lamb Chops, Roasted Parsnips, Green Beans, Pan Sauce

This dish was everyone's favorite. Our guests especially loved the herbed crust. I loved both the herbed crust and the parsnips, which were tossed in oil, salt and pepper and roasted in the oven. I will be eating parsnips regularly now.
The funny thing about the preparation of this dish is that Hubby's lamb chops require a 500 degree oven. In our tiny house, the opening of such a piping hot oven causes a very sensitive fire alarm to sound! Yet, the lamb chops were cooked to perfection.

Fourth course: Grandmomma's Pound cake

This was my contribution to the dinner, and Hubby was right, the crust absolutely makes this cake a winner. Growing up, Hubby confesses that he would only eat the edges of his Grandmomma's poundcake. At first attempt – and with a devine recipe – the pound cake was considered a success. However, the inside was still slightly undercooked, either because it needed more baking time or self-rising flour (which we didn't have, so I ignored that small detail).

We drank one bottle of white with all four courses. It was a Bodegas Gurrutxaga Txakoli 2008 from Spain. It is minerally and slightly effervescent, which is one of my fave qualities in white wine.

Bon Appetit!

On cloud nine

Because Hubby and I felt it was best to avoid the 12-hour drive to Memphis – the destination of our brief, past-weekend trip – we decided it was time to get on a plane. We booked the cheapest flight we could find, an RDU to Nashville flight on Southwest, and then rented a car to drive the final 3 hours to Memphis. (As of yet, Southwest does not fly direct to Memphis. Too bad, because as a whole the airline is FANTASTIC.)
Since I've been flying for as long as I can remember, planes are usually no big deal to me. I do freak a little during the landing. But with our 5-month-old son in tow, flying suddenly became a much bigger deal. No one wants to be the person with the screaming baby on the plane, and every new parent fears just that will happen for their child's first flight.
Trekking through the airport was business as usual. Bathroom pit stops were slightly longer due to diaper changes. Airport food was still excruciatingly overpriced.

Hubby and Caleb waiting in the terminal for our flight to board.

Southwest allows families with children under the age of 4 to board before the majority of other travelers, which is a nice touch considering all the extra baggage we parents carry.
Hubby, Caleb, and I settled quietly into a window and middle seat, leaving the aisle seat open for any willing taker. Folks trickled in slowly with their carry-ons and hunted down the perfect seats for our short 1.5-hour flight. No one bothered to sit beside us. Not a soul.
We knew this was a full flight; someone would eventually be forced to sit beside us. But no one wanted to. These people avoided us like the plague. They saw our darling little boy and went running for the hills.

Here are Hubby and Caleb, empty seat to their right.

Who wouldn't want to sit beside this little guy?

Our fellow travelers assumed the worst of our baby, as most people would I'm sure. But Caleb didn't cry. He proved them all wrong.
Instead, he slept on my shoulder. Sometimes he nursed. Sometimes he stared out the window at the clouds. But our baby boy was well-behaved.

My angel sleeping, mouth wide open, on the plane ride to Nashville.

Caleb was pleased with his behavior as well. He honestly shocked us all, and I am such a proud mommy that we survived our first flight with baby.

Now that is one happy post-flight baby! Way to go Caleb. You've put your parents on cloud nine.

The sweetest surprise

My sweet hubby knows me too well. For our Valentine's celebration, he reserved spots for us at the Wine Authorities' Lovin' Bubbles tasting class held this past Friday evening. He planned this surprise for us all on his own, kept it a secret from me for more than a week, and even arranged for a babysitter.
Hubby knew this was the perfect gift for me; I love sparkling wine and I love chocolate. I could survive off those two items alone. Well, maybe those plus water and cheese. Anyway, hubby knew this would make me VERY happy.
We arrived promptly at 7:30 and found our way to the front of the class. Eight empty glasses and a blank tasting notes sheet awaited each of us. The class was full within minutes with around 35 "students."

We tasted the following 8 sparkling wines:
(1) Antech Blanquette de Limoux 2007, (2) R. Coutier Grand Cru Brut Champagne NV, (3) Adami "Garbel" Prosecco 13 NV, (4) Sumarroca Cava Reserva Brut 2007, (5) Steininger Grüner Veltliner 2007, (6) Lo Duca Lambrusco Rosso Dulce NV, (7) Sant' Evasio Moscato d'Asti 2008, and (8) Sant' Evasio Brachetto d'Acqui 2009.

I appreciated the fact that we didn't learn the cost of these wines until after tasting each one.
For me what was most helpful was that we tasted an array of styles of sparkling wine all in one sitting. I knew I liked Prosecco and I knew I like Cava, but before this tasting I didn't really have grounds for comparison because I can't remember ever trying them side by side.
I will admit that I liked the champagne the best, the Austrian Steininger second best, and very surprisingly, the sweet, low-cost Lambrusco third best, although every wine was a winner.

Tastings are meant to be fun, especially when drinking wine is just your hobby. The experts at Wine Authorities are so helpful during these tastings, even providing all of us with the basic steps of how to taste wine.
One of the best tips they've shared is that when writing down tasting notes, just jot whatever comes to mind, be it the oddest smell or flavor in the world. Writing down in my own words will help me to better remember the specifics of that wine. I come up with some crazy things too, i.e. popcorn, coca cola, sunshine, paper, and baby poo!!! (For the record, by baby poo I mean breastfed infant baby poo, which smells vastly different than real-food fed toddler poo).

In between sips we learned how different styles of sparkling wines are produced, about different regions of sparkling wine production, and interesting tidbits like what a "nun's fart" is. (For those who are curious, a "nun's fart" is the quiet hissing noise heard when the pressure is released while properly opening a bottle of bubbly).

We were then joined by Jon Marcarelli, part-owner of Durham-based Dolly Mama Handmade Chocolates. He provided us with the eight delicious samples shown below.

We learned a lot about the chocolate-making process, from bean to bar, though it involves many steps and includes some large scientific-sounding terminology and is far too deep for me to explain on this blog.
Just know cocoa powder + cocoa butter + sugar/milk = chocolate heaven.
I can honestly say that I now know from experience that a higher percentage of cocoa powder/cocoa butter on the label of chocolate bar does not equate to better quality or better flavor chocolate. That's just part of an overall formula.
We were offered a square of 100% cocoa chocolate to prove this point. It was one of the worst tasting things I've ever put on my tongue, reminescent of disintegrating tylenol. It was as if I were licking a wooden table. Oh so bad.
My favorite was a cocheria from Colombia. Made from the Trinitaria bean, this chocolate had flavors of cherry fruit, espresso bean, and cinnamon. It was fantastic.

To finish off a perfect evening, Hubby bought me The Eros box of Dolly Mama chocolates. It included: The Oscuro, Love Potion, Sweet Tea, the Jasmine Fleur de Lys, the Golden Buddha, Don Juan Kiss, Angel's Share, Hand of Buddha Citron. The box is now gone.

Thank you hubby for some wonderful memories!

Photo of the Day

Welcome to the world baby Noah Finn Shipley!

Hubby and I spent a long weekend in Memphis visiting family, friends, and the newest addition, baby Noah. Noah will be three weeks old tomorrow and he is a beautiful piece of work. Congrats to the parents, Hannah and Derek – you guys did a spectacular job! (Hannah is my hubby's younger sister, for those readers who don't know).
Baby Noah is shown above in the loving arms of his daddy.

More photos to come...

More photos of Noah

Mommy Hannah and baby Noah

Daddy Derek and baby Noah

Uncle Jed feeding baby Noah


Mommy Hannah and baby Noah. That's his little crying face.

Baby Noah stares in awe at Daddy Derek

Uncle Jed with baby Noah

Sweet boy
Aunt Hannah and Uncle Derek playing with Caleb

Sister, Brother, and young cousins

Baby Caleb loves his Aunt Hannah!

Once upon a time

Five days a week, I spend my lunch hour away from work visiting baby Caleb at daycare. He eats a little lunch, we change a diaper or two, and then we play to our heart's content – or until I have to head back to work. It's our precious little midday ritual that I have grown to love.

Here is Caleb staring at "the strange baby" in the mirror and chewing on blocks.

There are so many toys to play with that sometimes it becomes a chore deciding what to do next.

Today the decision was easy. One of his daycare instructors announced "Storytime!" for the class. All the babies gathered 'round to hear a story about Valentine's Day.

Here is baby Caleb squealing with delight during story time.

Caleb sat at the back of the class. His girlfriend is in the purple contraption in front of him.

Caleb paid the least attention of all the babies, as he was very interested in this purple butterfly.

Story time has never been so much fun!