Friday Things
1. Dominic is loving life now that he’s sitting up and crawling around the majority of the time. He’s getting into toys, and when he’s sitting, Joseph loves to run over and sit as close to him as possible. When Dominic sees him coming, he breaks into the biggest smile. He also cut his 3rd tooth this week (a top one!) and I think the other one is one its way in. So, we’ve had some cranky stretches this week, too!
2. Joseph had another oral food challenge this week at the allergist’s – the first of the tree nuts – almond… and he passed! It was so long (5 hours, through lunchtime, and a missed nap), but he was so, so good. All of the nurses were begging to take him home, they couldn’t believe how pleasant and charming he was, ha! I’m always so stressed out when we do the oral challenges; while he can obviously talk and communicate, he’s still not old enough to really understand what’s happening or to adequately explain how he feels, so outside of the nurse and I checking his back and stomach for hives, it’s a lot of paying attention to his breathing, making sure he doesn’t start to sound congested or clearing his throat, etc. I take a massive deep breath once we get to the 1-hour wait at the end, which means he’s eaten everything and hasn’t had any noticeable reaction. We’ll do another one next month for walnuts… baby steps on our way to peanuts! And this means bring on the almond butter and Honey Nut Cheerios!
3. I am currently craving waffles; I can’t remember the last time I had one, so it’s definitely time to make a big batch and stock the freezer! (I also loaded up our freezer with sandwich bread and banana muffins this week!… And I steam mopped… I guess it was a productive week, ha!)
4. So, the whole unicorn food and drink thing… is it awful that I just can’t get into it?
5. What was the best movie the year you were born? Check it out on Thrillist… Here is mine:
If you were born in 1980…
The BIGGEST movie was The Empire Strikes Back, which grossed $209.4 million in the United States.
The Best Picture winner was Ordinary People, which also won Oscars for Best Director (Robert Redford), Best Supporting Actor (Timothy Hutton), and Best Adapted Screenplay
But the best movie was Airplane!. There is not an inch of this disaster movie spoof left un-wisecracked. Relentless with wordplay, sight gags, and throwaway lines (“Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue”), Airplane! is as pristine as any Renaissance painting, just with inflatable co-pilots instead of Jesus.
#1 – I am so not into Star Wars, and I think I watched this for a class once? ::shrug::
#2 – I’ve never seen it, but since it stars Robert Redford, I’m adding it to my must-watch list!
#3 – This is so funny, because I literally grew up watching Airplane – it was one of my dad’s all-time favorite movies. We had the tape and my dad watched it all the time!
6. You may remember me asking a few weeks ago about whether you’d be interested in a BEB Facebook group… good news – I started one! You can join here >> Brown Eyed Baker Friends!
Jump in and ask questions, share photos, share recipes (not just mine, any that you love!)… so excited to have another place we can all interact together!
7. House of Cards drops on Netflix on Tuesday… I’m totally counting down!
8. Just in time for the holiday weekend – I have a new recipe video this week and it’s for my Best Ever Potato Salad. It’s the only potato salad recipe I make and is utter perfection!
9. You know I’m totally invested in the NHL playoffs, so that double overtime game 7 last night totally took years off of my life, but wow! Back to the finals!
10. TGIF! Duke got groomed yesterday, so he’s looking and smelling super fresh! (It also totally wears him out, so much napping was in order.)
I’m with you on the whole unicorn thing. I just don’t get it…
Oh, and you’re baby’s adorable and your cake pictures are amazing!
Dominic is just awesome, just like my little one, they look so much fun and enjoying life, we can learn so much from them!
Not a hockey fan (come on, I’m from buffalo ????) but I so enjoy this site and your recipes! Love your posts  before and after your babies and look forward to Friday things and doggy post pics too. Â
Michelle, love your blog!! Thanks for always posting such great recipes. Your blog is always one of the first places I turn when I’m trying to decide what to make for dinner. :)Â I’m a native Pittsburgher currently living in the D.C. area. (Caps land! That’s been fun the past couple years ;) ) I agree that that double OT game took a few years off my life! But on to the Finals we go! Go Pens!Â
This Caps fan loves your blog enough to forgive your taste in hockey teams ????????????! Long time lurker who thinks your site is just great.Â
Haha! I can’t help it… born and bred in Pittsburgh, they’re my team :) (And thank you for the kind words, much appreciated!)
Glad to hear he’s getting through the food allergy tests with flying colors. I’ll be rooting for your Penguins this year. I’ve got my fingers crossed they can beat Nashville. I cannot get into this (stupid) unicorn everything trend. The drinks always seem to be loaded with sugar and no appealing appearance or flavor combo, for me and the foods while interesting don’t appeal either because i refuse to put that much work into a dessert. I draw the line at the 4 colors I make of cream cheese cake mix cookies. I have to ask, have you seen the video compilation of golden retrievers currently making the rounds on Facebook. I confess when I watch it I can’t help but think of Duke and Einstein.
Aww I haven’t seen that video, but I’ll keep an eye out for it!
Ordinary People is a wonderful movie but Robert Redford isn’t in it, he’s the director. Mary Tyler Moore is amazing in it.
Waffles are so delicious! Have you tried Kodiak Cakes?? It’s a waffle and pancake mix(I know what you’re thinking gross), but they’re AMAZING! ???????? The best part is they’re protein packed!! Delicious and Nutritious!!
I haven’t tried them, I’ll check them out, thanks for the suggestion!
I’m not a huge movie buff; I was born in 1958 and I don’t remember much in the way of movies except for The Sound of Music…I think that was 1965. I LOVED THAT MOVIE! I still like to watch it even now and still enjoy it. Then of course there was the phenomenal Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid!!!…slow my heart..:)
We had 7 children in our family so we didn’t go out to the movies very much, mainly I remember the ’60’s sitcoms playing on television around our house, I Love Lucy, Bewitched, Dennis the Menace, Mr. Ed, etc. We spent so much time outdoors playing (as the old Facebook joke goes, LOL!), that I really didn’t see a lot of movies growing up. I think my very favorite time for movies were the 70’s, I LOVED and still do, The Way We Were and Love Story, and All the President’s Men (my Mother was working at the Washington Post at the time that film was being made and she saw Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman and Jack Warden many times in the newsroom…getting a feel for he characters they were to play . It is most likely just the era I grew up in but I feel like the movies they made in the 70’s were so much different from anything they make now and far better…and they stuck around in the theatres for much longer! :) Even the sitcoms of the 70’s were so good, two of my favorites that came on Saturday night were the Mary Tyler Moore Show and Rhoda…LOVED THOSE SHOWS! Have a great holiday weekend Michelle!
I totally agree with you about movies and TV, and I grew up in the 80’s! My husband and I rarely find a good movie, and there only a few new TV shows worth watching. Definitely not any really good sitcoms, I miss those!
What a game last night! Â Admittedly double OT had me thinking the worst, but of course always hoping for the best, and the Pens pulled out the win. Â So ready for Monday night!
Question for you: Â when you freeze waffles, do you do anything special with them? Â Do they get soggy? I’ve never frozen waffles and am wondering if I should freeze them layered with parchment paper. Â I use it to freeze cookies and it works wonderfully well for me.
And wanted to say how good the New York Crumb Cake is that you posted a couple of weeks or so ago. Â I made it this past weekend for dessert with homemade frozen custard for our Sunday Dinner. Â EVERYone loved it! Â There was not one crumb left over. Â It came together so quickly, and I like that it makes 8×8 pan which is perfect for a one time dessert. Â That being said, do you think the recipe could be doubled and baked in a 9×13 pan for a larger crowd?
Have a great Memorial Day weekend, and GO PENS!!
Hi Michelle! I agree – was convinced they’d lose, but was pleasantly surprised! As for waffles, I usually lay them out in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet and put it in the freezer. Once the waffles are frozen, I transfer them to a ziploc freezer bag. To reheat, I use the toaster oven and they’re never soggy.
So awesome to hear you loved the crumb cake, one of my favorites! Yes, I have doubled it and made it in a 9×13 many times, it works great!
Ordinary People is so good but Robert Redford is not in it. He directed. Mary Tyler Moore and Donald Southerland are in it. I highly recommend. It’s dark but very well done.Â
So happy the Pens  are heading back to the Stanley Cup finals but not sure my heart can survive the stress!  As for all this Unicorn obsession I just don’t get it (or the Nutella or Starbucks obsessions either).  Good to hear the allergy testing is going well for Joseph.  Hope you and your boys have a great Holiday weekend.
I couldn’t sleep after the big Pens double OT win so I was  hoping Friday Things would be up. Glad for Joseph that he is doing good with the nut testing. I imagine the 5 hours probably feel like 10, but he had a little victory in the end. Have a great holiday weekend with the family Â