One Year Old. Looking Back and Bonus Cake Smash Pictures!

If you are not familiar with my blog, I purposefully do not use names in order to give us a little big of privacy. 


On 2/28/2018 our lives changed forever.

BabyCPK was born.

2/28/2019 she turned 1. The Earth rotated around the sun. Her father and I changed, but not half as much as she did. From a little potato who could pretty much only cry, feed and poop to a toddler who can say "dada" and "Aa daa" (all done) and "Hello" and thinks it is hilarious when Daddy has to chase after her when she crawls all the way to DogCPK's water bowl before we notice.

Player 3 has Entered the Game

BabyCPK entered this world at about 11:22 am on February 28th. 7 pounds 6 ounces, 20.25 inches long

Short and ungory birth details

We had arrived at the hospital at about 8am on the 27th for an induction, spent 28 hours in the labor and delivery room, and about 18 hours of active labor. I ended up trying for an epidural, which helped with contractions, but was placed too high, so I felt all of the delivery, which I didn't know I wasn't supposed to.

 

BabyCPK rocking her first onesie. She gets cranky when changed, so this is the best we could do 

Breaky was and is an absolutely amazing partner and husband. More than I could have ever even dreamed of. Supportive for every contraction, cutting the cord, taking care of the baby in the recovery room once she was here so I could get some sleep.

He is already a fantastic father! <3 

This baby girl takes after her father, in the way that she has the vocal cords to let everyone know she is awake a HYPED. Or, you know, hungry and cranky. All the same thing right? 

New gaming shirt? Will BabyCPK make a stream appearance or two? Who's hyped? 

Hello world! It's ME. 

Thanks to everyone for the well-wishes, the flowers, the presents, the food, the visits, the help. We love you all and appreciate every single one of you. If we forgot to say something directly to you, it is probably because we are blissfully sleep deprived.

Out of the Blue

If you follow Breaky, you may know that he has been casting pretty much 2 weeks straight. I know it may not seem like a lot, but when you consider how much energy it takes to cast, and how unpredictable games can be, it really can be draining.

He had been working so hard, and you could just tell afterward he was just exhausted, especially on days in which there were three matches with three games each, starting at 8:00 am.

With a little inspiration from Pinterest, I wanted to let him know I was thinking about him and how proud I am for how hard he was working.

So "Out of the BLUE" (hehe) I got him a little gift basket with all things blue.

Pi Day

Yes, I am posting a food-related post not on a Friday. Still a Food Friday though. Because I said so. Kind of. Also, I wish it was Friday.

Happy 3.14159265359... day. Or also known as Pi Day. Because it is 3/14. Ha ha. Very cute. Math.

Now, as many of you may know, if you know me at all, that I do not make a habit of baking. While sometimes my cooking disasters turn out salvageable, my baking has had an atrocious legacy. Mostly cakes. They just do not turn out, or I am too impatient.

Exhibit A. Happy Birthday Breaky

BUT, one thing I do bake is apple pie. My Dad makes the best apple pies, and it has kind of become a tradition. My Dad is similar in kitchen styles to me, in that he kind of makes things up as he goes, and rarely uses a recipe. If he does, it is a complicated old family recipe, like the Julekakke at Christmas, or it is a recipe he created and wrote down to remember. I once asked him if he has his apple pie recipe so I can include it in our family recipe book. He said that he just uses the recipe from the box of Kraft Minute Tapioca. I look over at him, knowing full well he had modified it in some way. "What about the apple juice?" I ask. "Well, yeah, I guess I add that" he said. "And the extra crust?" "Well, that's just for fun." 

Two peas in a pod. 

So, I present the modified Kraft Minute Tapioca Apple Pie. (Original Recipe here)

Ingredients:

• 6 cups of thinly sliced peeled apples
• 3/4 cup sugar (my Dad substitutes the appropriate amount of Splenda/Stevia to make it sugar-free-ish)
• 2 Tbsp Minute Tapioca
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (or as much as you think is right)
• 1/4 ground nutmeg (I used just a little less)
• 1 package ready-to-use refrigerated pie crust
• Apple juice (just a few sprinkles)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Peel and slice up your apples if you have not already

As you are tossing the apples in to a large mixing bowl, sprinkle a little apple juice into the mixture. This will prevent the apples from going brown super fast. Toss in the sugar, tapioca and spices as you go along. Mix together. 

Line the pie plate of your choice with one of the crusts (the package will have two). Read the directions on what ever pre-made crusts you have. Some will instruct you to poke holes with a fork along the bottom to prevent bubbling. 

Put the mixture in and cover with the remaining crust. Some crust may be left over over the sides. Cut that stuff off, toss it in sugar and cinnamon, put on a separate baking sheet. Cut slices/slits on the top of the pie crust to allow steam to escape. You may want to put a little melted butter or spray butter on the top, especially near the crusts to make a nice golden brown. I always add a little cinnamon to the top too. 

Put the pie and the baking sheet in. Take the extra pieces that are on the baking sheet out after about 10-15 minutes, and you have a fun little snack while you wait. 

The pie should bake for just about 40-50 minutes until the top is golden-ish brown or some of the juice is bubbling through. 

*Disclaimer, this recipe only makes one pie. I made two for today. So I doubled the recipe

HAPPY PI DAY FOLKS!

2016 a Recap

Everyone is giving 2016 a failing grade.

Why?

Probably has a lot to do with the election from Hell, or the numerous amounts of celebrity deaths. Or maybe for personal reasons it was a difficult one. I know, I've had years like that (I'm looking at you, 2012).

But for our little family, it was a jam-packed year full of change, growth, scary unknowns and additions.

In March, we added to our little family by welcoming "DogCPK." She was a rescue from our local Animal Rescue Project. As you may tell from the picture, she is blind in her left eye, and therefore was "discounted" (ugh, can we just talk about how ridiculous that is. She's a dog, not a discounted tee shirt for sale, Jesus). We cannot imagine our life without this little ball of energy. She goes from 0-100 with 0 being snoring and snuggling on the couch and 100 being going bat crap crazy and running and jumping on everything and everyone because she loves them so much.

In April I started my blog with my first blog post. Who knew I would actually stick with it! And a few people read it, which is pretty cool :) 

In May I got a new job in my field in Kalamazoo. I work in higher education and I'm going to leave it at that. I do try to make an effort to keep my two worlds as separate as possible. I will say the movement was an upward one, and was good for my career as well as our financial situation.



In June I turned....*whispers* thirty. That's right. I am an adult. Like, a super duper adult.


In September I got to see one of my favorite bands of all time in concert, in my city! Also got to see my roommate from my Freshman year of college.

Also in September, Breaky announced he was going freelance. This was the scary part for us. But exciting. I can deal with budgeting a little more stringently if it means he can pursue his dream. I am very proud of him, and things are just getting better.

We had a kick-ass Halloween party, again. Always a highlight of our year.

There is obviously a ton more, of which you can read back through my blog for an update of sorts. While 2016 for us was overall pretty good, we are looking forward to 2017. More blog posts, more adventures and more beginnings.

Happy New Year everyone!

Holiday Traditions

Ok, I know months ago I said that Halloween was my favorite holiday. But... I do enjoy Christmas quite a bit.

All people ha- their holiday traditions. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah. Kwanza, Festivus, or nothing at all, there are things in this time of year that are standard staples in your life. It could be as simple as going out for Chinese food on Christmas Day, or staying put during the week of Christmas to avoid the crazy traffic of last-minute shoppers, or packing up the family and going to Florida for the week.

My side of the family is rich with holiday tradition. My grandfather made (MADE!) a snowman that moved his hand and tipped his top hat when you opened up their door. To my understanding, he attached the arm with the top hat to the door so when you opened it he was tipping his hat. My Dad's love of Christmas shone in the continuation of many traditions and many new ones that he created when he started his own family. One neat tradition he got from Alfred Burt was to create a Christmas Carol and include it on our Christmas card.

Now, having been married to Breaky for a year and a half, my traditions have evolved in to continuation of my family's traditions and new ones that were created after Breaky and I got married and got our own place.

Our traditional Christmas meal on Christmas Eve-Eve

Since I started in higher education, I have been blessed with getting a few days off around the holidays. Unfortunately, this usually does not include the day before Christmas Eve (and sometimes Christmas Eve even), so usually Breaky and I are still in Kalamazoo for the day before Christmas Eve-Eve. We have now turned this into "Our Christmas" where we exchange our own gifts, put on Christmas pajamas, enjoy and great dinner and then watch some kind of Christmas movie. This year we decided that the Christmas movie was going to be Die Hard, because it IS a Christmas movie (and if you think differently, you can leave). This year also, we have the addition of our wonderful DogCPK, who bundled up in her sweater from her Nanna and helped us enjoy the wonderful evening.

looky what BreakyCPK got me! :) 

Big Daddy, a Little Sister and CLAPTRAP

Christmas Eve is spent at my parents' house in the city in which I grew up. Traditions for Christmas Eve include Mom frantically wrapping presents that she has put off doing, and filling stockings, making Norwegian Jule Kakke (Christmas bread) and watching Scrooge (1970 w/Albert Finney) and having either hors d'oeuvres or in the case of this year, pizza, for dinner. 

Lovely Jule Kakke

Breaky is officially a Norwegian by marriage :) 

A new tradition that is now just three years old, is that early Christmas morning, Mom and I go for a Christmas morning walk around the block (which is just about one mile). Once again, we added a new member, DogCPK, who LOVES walks, or as we have to say "w" because she knows what "walk" means.

Christmas morning walk selfie!!! 

Christmas morning has evolved from having a big fancy breakfast before opening up presents to having a piece of toast and a crap-ton of coffee before opening up presents, and having a big brunch after presents. Speaking of presents, the way our family has always opened our presents was in order, one at a time, from youngest to oldest. I believe this started when we were really little, the adults wanted to see what the kids got and I imagine there is some lesson in patience and giving that occurred as a result, but in reality it was probably to stem the chaos that is wrapping paper and boxes. I did not realize this was not something everyone did, until I would watch Christmas TV specials and, to my horror, kids would be unwrapping presents all willy-nilly. The HORROR. 

Thanks Mom! Junkrat primed and ready! MERRY CHRISTMAS. Who says Christmas can't include the Geeky side?

Anyway, presents are all unwrapped, so we enjoy a brunch which includes the Jule Kakke, scrambled eggs, toast bockwurst, coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice.

We then plug in White Christmas, and everyone takes a nap. You think I'm kidding. This was a tradition even way back when my Grandmother was still with us (bless her soul), who would take up the couch, and snore through "The Best Things Happen While You're Dancing.:"Another new tradition is that there are a few football games on the other tvs. Thanks Breaky. Mom and I will start making the beef en croute for dinner. Now Breaky helps with dinner by making his Dad's mashed potatoes.

Then comes Muppet Christmas Carol (the VHS version because they cut a scene when they made it into a DVD)

My Dad was a teacher for 35 years before he retired a few years ago. He taught choir, and if anyone was in choir or band in high school, you know what a production it can be. We had a bunch of parents, helpers and former students who would come back and help every year. A tradition was to have that group come back to our house for snacks and drinks. When he retired, we made it a point to invite those friends and family to our house the day after Christmas for food, drink, and lots and lots of music and singing. 

What are some of your Christmas traditions? Which have evolved and which have been older traditions?

Subtle Geek Pride

Sometimes I struggle with the duality of the life I live.

I work in a very professional, educational setting in which, at the current job I work, I don't even get to wear jeans on Fridays. After work, I get home, throw on my Hufflepuff sweatpants and my favorite Princess Peach tee-shirt and throw on my gamer headphones and play the latest expansion of Hearthstone for a few hours after playing with my dog in the snow. It is hard during those moments to feel like a professional woman with a graduate degree.

What is harder is to keep that passion for video games and general geek-ness alive at work. Actually, just had to explain to an individual who works in HR what my husband does for a living, as it came up in casual conversation that my husband was in Boston for "work." Oh, so what does your husband do?"..... *sigh* "Well......"

Lately, in today's world, having subtle, yet stylish representations of video game and geek pride for women have been an increasing trend for places like ThinkGeek (full disclosure, liked them a lot more when they were not owned by Gamestop, but that's a whole other blog post that I now have written in my head), and Blizzard and other prominent producers of gamer swag. 

I asked my Facebook friends if they had anything they loved to wear that was subtle, but geekish that they wore to work. I got a few awesome answers:

My new friend Sarah sent me pictures of her Solar System Necklace from Thinkgeek

LBHackEmUp rocking a cute Navi necklace 

Super cute triforce earrings on my friend Elle! 

I have a few things, but definitely lacking in the subtle, yet classy representation of geek.

My favorite is probably the Hearthstone necklace I wear probably 2-3 times a week:

A few weeks after Blizzcon 2015

Featuring the one and only Breakycpk in 2016

I also put a Lego brick keychain on my name badge so I can put my badge with my keys: 

Gotta represent the BATMAN: 

Added the yellow top recently. I think it looks better :) 

These don't even include all the sports-geek side of my life, which I also kind of inherited from Breaky
What are some of your favorite subtle ways to show your geek pride at work? Do you have something at your desk? A scarf or two? Let's help each other and get more representation of geek culture in our professional lives!

Row the Boat

Many of you may not have heard, either because you do not live in this country, or ESPN and many sports commentators still will not recognize it, but my alma mater Western Michigan University has had a wonderfully successful football season. We went 13-0 in the season, won the MAC and are going to the Cotton Bowl.


I have been a fan of WMU since I was little, as my father went there, then went to tons of games when I went there as a student. Remained a fan even when our team went 1-11 for a season.

The big deal these past few years has been the mantra "Row the Boat" coined by our head coach, PJ Fleck. Here is what he means by row the boat. Many of us (yes us, as I was a little skeptical) made fun of the mantra years ago. Now, you bet your bottom-dollar that I am rowing that boat like a mad woman at a Billy Talent concert. May even buy the tee-shirt.

Wanted to highlight some of the great times had watching football. Also wanted to celebrate the fact that I have made Breaky a fan of WMU Football, despite him being from way over in California and being more of a NFL fan instead of a college football fan.

Go Broncos! And Row the Boat!

This is from... what, 2005? Sophomore year I am pretty sure

2006 home game

Western vs Central Game 2007

2007 Homecoming game

2007 Homecoming

My Dad, my sister and me at a game this year

A big group of us at a home game to celebrate Breaky's birthday! 

Greg Jennings, who played for WMU while I was there. Went on to be in the NFL for a while before retiring. Came back to participate in ESPN's College Game Day at WMU

Breaky and Duchess at ESPN College Game Day 2016 

btw-it was as cold as it looks