Beach day

A few weeks ago we headed up to Gloucester for the day.  It's such a quaint beach town, perfect for a hot summer day.  

Sam's not a huge fan of his carseat these days, probably because it gets so dang hot.  What is it about carseats that makes them baby ovens??   We have a Chicco KeyFit30 and Sam comes out of it sweaty every time.  Maybe it'll keep him warm in the winter?  Anyway, due to Sam's transportation preferences, I wore him in the Ergo all day.  He stayed comfy and happy and I ended the day with a baby-shaped sweat stain on the front of my dress.  And no, there are no pictures of that.  It was gross.

 We got there around 11 and decided to have an early lunch at the Cape Ann Brewery. 

 A honey pilsner & a lobster roll for Nick and a pale ale & a giant bowl of clams for me.  No pictures of the food because it was housed.  Seafood=summer.

After lunch we wandered around the town center.  Stopped in a few antique shops and toy stores.  Cannot wait to buy so many toys for me Sam to play with!

A pit stop at Cape Ann Olive Oil Co. netted us a bottle of Chipotle olive oil.  So flavorful and a nice finishing touch on any Mexican dish.  I sampled entirely too much oil and vinegar and left SO thirsty- the espresso balsamic vinegar was surprisingly drinkable.  Would've bought a bottle, but how exactly does one use espresso vinegar?  I can only eat so many salads.  

 Last stop was Hammond Castle.  This modern medieval castle is a gem.  "The Father of the Remote Control" John Hays Hammond Jr. built this for his wife as a wedding present.  Pretty sure I just got a pair of earrings from my husband to be...nice ones, but still...

Don't be jealous of my awesome floppy hat. 

 The castle sits right on the water's edge with pristine views of the Atlantic.

Time to burp.

Sam got a great view of all the interesting ceilings at the castle, as he required a bottle while we were there.  Nick and I traded off carrying Sam and feeding him at the same time.  I'm getting some amazing triceps caring for this kid.


Our first full day out with the wee one went quite well- no true meltdowns from any of us.  High five, family!

The Baby Rodeo

I spent the beginning of February visiting my family in Texas. While my trips home are always special (mostly because they're so rare), this one had a special twist!

A baby shower! (Surprise- his name is Samuel!)

My mom and sister have been such a huge support to me throughout my entire pregnancy and they were sweet enough to throw me a cowboy-themed shower. Even though I've been in Massachusetts for the last decade (seriously, when did 10 years fly by?), I'm still a Texan at heart. I can't wait to teach my cowpoke all about his Lonestar roots!

From the decorations to the cake, this shower was pure country.

Baby boots filled with bluebonnets! My mom's boss has saved her children's cowboy boots since they were small and she has quite the collection. For her son's graduation party, her sisters filled them with flowers to use as centerpieces. She was kind enough to loan us these adorable decorations.

Don't squat with your spurs on!

Everyone's favorite cartoon cowboy, Woody!


I was blown away by the cake- this boot cake was the end-all, be-all of cakes. It was a monster- I'm guessing it was cut from at least a half-sheet cake. A&J Bakery on Oaklawn in Dallas made this yellow-cake and chocolate-frosted dream come true. I'm not ashamed to say I ate three pieces.

Because it was a book shower, my friends and family generously gave us copies of their favorite children's books. Sam has quite the library now! We got the Berenstain Bears, several Sandra Boynton classics, the full set of Boxcar Children books, and so many more. I already read one of the Hardy Boys books- quite an adventure! Everyone was so sweet explaining why they gave us each book- many were favorites of the shower guests or their children. I'm a huge book lover, so this was the perfect way to celebrate my sweet boy.




In true Betty-fashion, I completely forgot to take pictures of myself with any of my guests. I think my mom may have a few stashed on her camera.

As much fun as I had swapping stories with my friends and family, the real star of the show woke up from her nap half way through.

Isabella is going to be the best cousin ever!

A mermaid for a princess

My niece Isabella's first birthday was August 23rd. To celebrate, Nick and I flew to Texas. In true Texas fashion, this little girl needed a whole lotta cake to celebrate her first year on Earth. Enter- the mermaid cake!

My aunt Laura found the inspiration for this cake here. We used cake mix to make the process go a little faster.


She had a strawberry head, vanilla body, and chocolate and vanilla tail.

Avert your eyes, sailors, this mermaid isn't dressed yet!


Getting her hair done- chocolate cupcake style. And check out those luscious fruit roll up lips- so kissable!

We couldn't find any pastel Necco wafers, so cousin Grace was tasked with painting chocolate Neccos with edible glitter. It was time consuming, but the result was lovely!

Finally, she was ready for her close up- ooh la la!


Time to dig in!



Isabella was a true lady- she was so dainty while she ate this cake! She finally got a bit dirty when her daddy smeared some frosting on her face.

Here's to many more frosting-filled days!

Irish Brown Bread

Just a few more eats to show you, and a recipe for our favorite Irish baked good- brown bread.


Ice cream from Murphy's in Killarney- dark chocolate + cookie for Nick, sea salt + honeycomb for me. Sea salt was a surprise hit for me- love that salty sweetness.



Tea at the Old Courthouse Cafe in Inishmore. Love when they give you your own pot!



Trout, shepherd's pie, and potatoes + french fries from the Curragh in Killarney.


Bailey's ice cream from Jo's in Kinsale.

Seafood pancake and fried fish from the White House in Kinsale.


Whiskey tasting from Jameson Distillery in Dublin.



Beef and cheese pastie from Hanley's Cornish Pasties.



Seafood chowder and traditional Irish coddle from Oliver St. John Gogarty's in Dublin.

Flapjack!!

And now for the main event...brown bread. It's served alongside most dishes and the beauty of the brown bread lies in its simplicity. It's like the Irish people- cozy, welcoming, and inherently comforting.

Though we don't have the exactly right kind of flour needed for true brown bread, this works as a lovely substitute. I modeled it off of the recipe that Nick's Irish cousin Mary uses- she makes a fresh loaf every day and we got to devour more than our fair share when we stayed with her and her husband Pat in Galway.





Irish Brown Bread

Makes 2 small loaves

4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup ground flax meal
1/2 cup steel cut oats
Scant 3 cups almond milk
3 tblsp vinegar
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp salt
*Note- you could substitute buttermilk for the almond milk and vinegar. Or use regular cow's milk and vinegar to it.

Preheat oven to 425.

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, flax, oats, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine well.

In a large measuring cup, pour the almond milk and vinegar. Stir well and let stand 5-10 minutes. This is going to look kind of funky, but don't freak out.

Add the milk mixture to the dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined. The resulting dough is pretty wet and sticky. Freaking out is still unnecessary.

Grease two loaf pans and divide dough evenly between the two. Use your hands to gently shape the loaves.

Put both pans into the oven and bake 30-35 minutes. Test loaves by pulling them out of the oven and flipping over into an oven mitt. Tap the bottom. (ha.) It should should hollow.

Cool at least 30 minutes before cutting.