off we go

Beck - newborn, originally uploaded by eabryant.

I almost forgot . . . wait, no I didn't! I can't sleep I'm so excited. but I did almost forget to post about it.

we're leaving for our trip to the pacific northwest tomorrow! I get to meet this delicious little toad. isn't he delightful and tiny and squishy and I can tell all the way from here that he smells good and feels like heaven . . . um, I am sooooo pregnant. this is my newest nephew, beck, son of my super cool bro and his super cool wife who live in seattle. since they're shipping off to chicago next month for grad school, I'm so excited we get to visit before they move farther away.

after seattle we'll spend the rest of the weekend in hood river, oregon. it's david's birthday on saturday and I just found out there's no tv in our bed and breakfast. yipee! this will give us a chance to really live it up with the fantastic views, huckleberry pie and relaxing nights in the hot tub (legs only for me).

my goal for next week is to remember to post about our kitchen and bedrooms. I finally got most of my bedroom set up the way I want it so it's time to post pictures. coming soon!

so good blondies

blondies, originally uploaded by eabryant.

have you met goop? some of it is unrealistic to my non-celebrity lifestyle but these "chef kate blondies" are so good. I made some last night (halfed the recipe) in preparation for the harry potter premiere night david and I are seeing with my sister and her family who are here visiting at the beach. I made treat bags for them to take in the theatre because I'm just awesome like that. awesome aunt. awesome treats.

chef kate's blondies

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated cane sugar
1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, firmly packed
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
1 1/2 cups peanut butter chips
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Using an electric mixer (counter-top or hand-held), cream together the butter and sugars. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in three parts, combining well after each addition. Using a wooden spoon, fold in the coconut, peanut butter chips and marshmallows (it’s an arm workout).

Using a rubber spatula, spread the batter evenly in a nonstick or parchment-lined standard cookie sheet (12" x 18") with a 1" rim. Bake
for 15 minutes, cover loosely with a piece of aluminum foil and bake for an additional 12 minutes. Let cool completely and then cut
into 60 squares; they will be soft and chewy on the inside.

independence day

I have to wonder what my best 4th of july has been over the years. I don’t remember spending many (or any) independence days in the phoenix valley, mostly because the heat was too unbearable. it was mostly spent in the white mountains at our family cabin or in the small town of st. john’s where my cousins lived. those days involved a town bbq of baked beans and pit roasted meat which we ate under a big oak tree on patriotic blankets. we would race down the hill for a snow cone (watermelon, thank you very much) and then down to the park for activities. the day always finished with long naps on the trampoline at my cousin’s house while we licked dilly bars or whatever the schwan man had brought along with small town fireworks.
or, there was 4 years ago when I lived in boston. a large group of church friends staked out a spot on the charles river at the crack of dawn and saved our spot so we could listen to the boston pops play during the fireworks. up until that point, I had never seen such an amazing display of fireworks which reflected on the water of the chuck. afterwards, the friends and I opted to walk to cambridge and I have some great memories of flirting with one boy in particular who offered to walk me home. nothing came of it (obviously) except for one fun summer.
but – for this year’s festivities we thought we better take advantage of one of several san diego independence day fireworks displays. 1st choice (per usual for almost any activity): coronado island. we made a picnic complete with turkey sandwiches, fresh cut watermelon and pineapple, brownies and Pellegrino and staked out our spot near the glorietta bay. two hours later of people watching in delicious weather and we were viewing huge fireworks just above our heads while wrapped in blankets. it was truly spectacular. I couldn’t have asked for a better spot. the patriotic music that several fellow onlookers played from their stereos made my throat swell up when I thought about how much I love this country.
as the live feed played “god bless the usa” I thought to myself how this san diego experience was a great blend of the small town experience I enjoyed growing up coupled with the big city experience I marveled at in boston. I’m loving san diego for being a small big city – a wonderful oxymoron.

v for vacation

Oh, vacation. Choosing the right destination can be a struggle when you have so many options, so little time and so much desire to have a good time. Many of you helped me a few months ago by voting on my poll about where we should go on vacation. Well, as it turns out, we don’t have the money or the time off at work to go cross country (sob) and we are using Southwest tickets to get there (i.e. limited airport destinations) . . .

Enter: the Pacific Northwest.

photo by Rob Ramage

I love living in San Diego. The beach weather is lovely but I need me some forest! I have found myself craving my family cabin in the White Mountains of Arizona for the last few weeks. I crave the quiet of the mountains and the brisk air in the morning. I crave enormous trees and the smell of juniper firewood smoke rising from cabin chimneys. I crave the deep grass, the calm lakes and the long walks that come from the great outdoors. So, in a few weeks we’re flying out of San Diego and up to Seattle for a day to visit my brother, his wife and baby boy (our little man’s newest cousin)! From there, we’ll drive down to Hood River, Oregon via Multnomah Falls. Then we’ll spend a couple of days at the Seven Oaks Bed & Breakfast. We’ll enjoy the beauty of Mount Hood, the freshly picked berries at the Gorge White House and then we’ll take a ride on the Mount Hood Railroad. Anything else we’re missing in the Mount Hood area, locals?

I stressed about this trip for a long time. Which destination? Which restaurants? Which B&B? Which activities? I feel like this trip is a big deal since it’s our last “hurrah” to our life as just us before he arrives. I want it to be memorable and I finally feel like it will be a great time.

he. he. he.

Well, it must be a family trend . . . we’re having a boy! My brother and sister-in-law just had a baby boy a few weeks ago so it's very exciting that there will be two little guys as cousins. I just know they're going to be buddies!

As for the ultrasound, it was very entertaining.

Our little guy was sucking his thumb (which you can see in the top picture) and then he’d hiccup and stick his thumb back in. He did this 5 or 6 times. It was incredibly cute but I guess everything’s supposed to be “cute” to his mom. He has ten fingers, ten toes and the world’s cutest nose which you can get a clear shot of in this picture (below).

I love this kid so much already. So, so, so much.

home sweet home

get this . . . in our new condo, we have never turned on the air conditioning. not once. and it's june. and I'm happy. cause I come from a place where the air conditioning has been on since the end of april.

welcome to our home. it's taken us a while to get where we are as far as setting up our new place. and to be honest, deep down I'm not ready to show you it yet. I realize, however, that I have slacked majorly when it comes to blogging so here's me posting pictures of it. I'm not ready to show you the kitchen, dining room, two bathrooms and the master bedroom yet but I will soon. as for now, meet my family room.
it's rather tight but we finally made it all fit. though you can't see it, we have a lovely view from this patio facing west and we almost always leave the windows and doors open because we have a constant, pleasant breeze going on. it's like living in paradise.
and this is our sweet, little guest room which will soon be the nursery. but for the next 4 or 5 months it's just hanging out as the place for visitors (so far, just my mom - who I want to come back cause I miss her). all in all, it's a great place to live. we are across the street (literally) from one of the best malls in san diego (though living across the street from nordstrom, anthropologie and h&m is bad news). we are 5 minutes to downtown, 5 minutes to sea world and 7 minutes to the beach. not to mention that our commutes equal 2 miles combined.

we enjoy our little casa.

big changes

I love that david graduated from college two weeks ago (magna cum laude, I might add).I love these cute cupcakes I made for david's graduation party.

I love that our carne asada dinner turned out delicious.

I love that we are san diego residents (clarification: this lovely lighthouse is not our new home. I wish! alas, it is the point loma lighthouse.)

I love my life (and my big, fat, pregnant belly).

eggs

this is how we finally spilled the beans when we told my family I am pregnant.

I made a few coconut cupcakes for our almost-easter dinner and passed them out to my family. there were a lot of confused looks until they read both sides of the sign.

toots

I had a delicious tootsie roll at work today. and then I got all sentimental.

you see, tootsie rolls remind me of halloween. for some reason we received lots of tootsie rolls, tootsie pops and tootsie minis in our pillow cases in my childhood neighborhood. coincidentally, tootsie rolls also happen to be some of my favorite candies (second only to reisen and red vines). I remember the feeling of holding open my sack and wondering what the latest oatmeal-laden-faced neighborhood “witch” mom was putting in there. I was always too embarrassed to look inside while they dropped in each piece because I was afraid it might be rude. at the end of the night I would plunge one greedy hand inside and inevitably pull out at least a few tootsie rolls. heaven.

so, after all that, you probably think that I am sentimental because it reminded me of my childhood right? alas, that is false. eating the tootsie roll reminded me of halloween which reminded me of my due date which reminded me that I’m having a baby which reminded me to smile (like I could help it).

and now you know.

the babe

isn't our baby cute?

oh, did I forget to mention that I'm pregnant? and that this is our babe? and that we're really excited? and that it's been so hard for me to keep this a secret? and that I can't stop smiling? and that I'm so glad I don't feel queasy any more? and that I love this peanut so much already?

whoops.

moving

if you've read my blog for any period of time, you would know that my man and I are fans of california - particularly san diego. every summer, we spend about a week enjoying the beach, the weather on our beach cruisers, our favorite restaurants in la jolla and sunsets at sunset beach in point loma (behold - our engagement photos).

is my hair unnaturally (and hideously) yellow in these pictures? why, yes. yes, it is.

the time has come to announce that come the middle/end of may, we will officially be residents of san diego! david has been offered a great job there in downtown and my company is allowing me to transfer there as well. woot! we're both so grateful to have jobs in this economy . . . but a great job in san diego? land of 70 degrees nearly year round. land of 6 farmer's markets on saturdays within 10 miles of me. land of fantastic seafood. land of beaches and balboa park and outdoor events aplenty? I am grate. ful.

tomorrow morning I am hopping on a plane to meet david there so we can look for a place to live. here's where you all come in (if you can). do I have any readers in the san diego area? we need a 2 bedroom place in downtown (I'm loving little italy), mission bay, fashion valley or point loma. anywhere north or east of that is going to be too far and we have some areas that we know we don't want to live. we've already looked for hours and hours on craigslist and have about 25 condos we're going to be viewing, but if you know of a smoking deal we can't pass up checking out - please let me know at bryantmilestones@gmail.com! wish us luck!

chairs

remember these chairs that we inherited?then, remember how those chairs became these chairs?well, now those chairs are these chairs.
ones I much prefer (though the real chairs live in storage for another month). this goes so much better with my soft, beach cottage look.

cinnamon rolls

the quintessential general conference food: cinnamon rolls. they are so good. you know you want one so I'm going to share the recipe. how kind of me.cinnamon rolls
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup water
3/4 stick of butter
heat all in a small saucepan over medium heat until very warm (about 120 degrees)

2 cups flour
2 Tablespoons yeast
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
mix together in a stand mixer until combined. pour in liquid and mix for 2 minutes. add 1 egg and mix until stretchy (about 1 minute).

add another 1 1/2 - 2 cups flour to make a soft dough (be careful not to add too much). knead for 5 minutes in stand mixer. let rest for 10 minutes. roll out into an oblong square on a lightly floured surface. brush with melted butter and spread a generous layer of brown sugar and ground cinnamon on top. tightly roll into a log and cut slices 2 fingers in width.

spray a cookie sheet and place shaped dough 2 inches apart from each other. very lightly press down to flatten. cover and let rise for 15 - 20 minutes (not too long or else they'll be huge)! bake at 375 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes until golden brown. it's very important to cook these all the way because they're nothing worse than a cinnamon roll that's not done in the middle. remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before frosting.

cream cheese frosting
1/4 cup butter
4 ounces cream cheese
3 cups powdered sugar
1 Tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

mix until smooth. spoon over semi-cooled cinnamon rolls and spread.

speaking of general conference, click here to read my favorite talk from october's session: "come what may and love it".

baby cakes

we had a baby shower for one of my co-workers. actually, I lied. we had a bridal shower for two of my co-workers since they are married, work in the same department and are having their first baby - a girl.

I made this cake and it was delicious, although at midnight on thursday, I remembered why I don't do this kind of thing very often anymore. it was good practice for me to work on my royal icing consistency, steady hand-piping with certain tips and general frosting smoothing . . . that's where I need the most work. aren't conference rooms so pretty and glamorous for such occasions?

in any case, here's the best chocolate cake I know of. my lovely sister-in-law has been searching for the perfect chocolate cake. I feel like I need to remind her of this one since it's my favorite. alas, I don't reside in utah. maybe I can convince rookie cookie to take it to her since her recent relocation to wasatch country . . .

perfect chocolate cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
6 Tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
2 cups cold water

sift together dry ingredients. add wet ingredients and mix well until slightly fluffy. spray two 8 inch round pans and evenly divide the batter in each. cut through batter with a knife to release air bubbles. bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (very important as this cake is already super moist - you want it to be thoroughly done). let cool entirely before frosting.

chocolate cream cheese frosting
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup cocoa
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

cream butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer until soft. add remaining ingredients and mix until smooth.

storming the kitchen

I'm cooking up something special (pun intended). I'll share the details as soon as it's done but in the meantime I'll give you three hints:

1. chocolate
2. royal icing flowers
3. cream cheese frosting

I hope it's worth the mess!