Ok, ok... I'll blog.

If you get offended by a video making fun of "hipsters", does it mean you're a hipster? I hardly know what that means. Maybe it was the blogging part of it. Just because I blog does not make me a hipster. Would it be so bad if I was labeled as one? That was just a side note. Not really what I was going to write about tonight. But while I'm on that note, I'm definitely a fan of being a unique individual. Why WOULD you want to be like everyone else? If you end up being normal just being yourself, that's cool. But if you're kinda nerdy  or you're a little strange when it comes to normal, who cares? You're you! What's really not cool is pretending you're something you're not and trying to be like someone else because you think they're happier or better or cooler than you. Be the best version of yourself. In the words of Oscar Wilde,

“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”

 If you're interested, here's the video.

I'm not highly offended by it. It's actually kinda funny. But I'm not trendy enough to really know the definition of hipster so it got me wondering.

Alright, so now the real reason behind my post: the last week. Perhaps a bit less entertaining than the aforementioned video. We had a lovely Valentines day on our nonexistent limited college family budget. We bought a pack of "cuties" for Levi. The cutest guy in my heart... ah... I love him. I did a last minute corny gift for Jason using some cheesy version of "I'm hooked on you" or something like that, attached to a bag of gummy worms. The fact that they were sour worms redeemed it a little bit. Jason thoughtfully gifted me 3 (yes three- one for me, one for the little guy inside and one for good luck.) apple fritters from our new favorite doughnut shop. Breakfast was an adorable waffle with heart shaped strawberries. What a sweetheart my husband is.

We had a midwife appointment on Tuesday with the only midwives in town who will deliver at home. (Welcome to Rexburg, Land of limited choices in absolutely every area you can possible imagine.) They certainly aren't my favorite midwife- April Kermani, but I'm sure they'll "deliver" when the time comes. (Did anybody actually laugh at that? Or should I just delete it...) Our baby is as healthy as can be and has the most glorious sounding heartbeat. He is just beautiful. I can't wait to meet him! Poor kid doesn't have a name yet, but we are working on it!

Honestly, the reason I haven't updated the blog in a week is because I have been SO tired. I don't know why. Besides the usual "I'm pregnant" excuse, I really don't have any reason. Maybe I don't need one. So on that note, goodnight! Oh- and keep your eyes open for a fun post soon. I've got a project to share with you! An exciting one!

A Library Card

"I have found the most valuable thing in my wallet is my library card."- Laura Bush

I'm a total nerd. Or just more of a book worm. I love to read. Anything and everything. I got an entire series (4 books) for Christmas and finished them the first week of February. You could say I'm a bit of a fanatic when it comes to new books. It started when I was a little girl and the desire to enter another world through reading has never left me. It just feels so GOOD to read. Weird? Anyway, you can imagine my absolute glee when my little boy walks up to me with a pile of books and wants to sit on my lap and read them. I am overjoyed that my 13-month-old loves to read!

We headed to the library today to get a library card and check out a few books. (And see the fish, of course.) Levi was afraid to go close to the fish tank because he saw the huge plecostomus (sucker fish) they have. He does look a little creepy if I may say so. We played with the toys there and then snuggled up with a few board books. Sweet little man. I am so in love with him.

Since I have been craving donuts Levi was so good at the library, we headed over to Paradise Donuts to check it out. While the inside was less than impressive (not even a good spot for a photo-op), the donuts were spectacular. We now know where the best and only place is the get good donuts in Rexburg. Not that we need them...

To complete our adventure, we went to check out Porter's- the town's craft store. It was far beyond a strong temptation for me, so we didn't spend much time in there. Levi tried to help me pick out some fabric, but we were unsuccessful. I guess I'll be ordering some samples online. 

 Is he the most beautiful thing you've ever seen? I tell ya- that profile gets me every time. What a lovely day with my favorite little boy.

Nesting

I can't explain the many phenomena that occur when a woman is pregnant. There are some things you just have to accept. Cravings for strange food combinations, mood swings and the strange similarity we have to birds when they are expecting a few babies. One day it just hits you and you think,"this house must be perfectly clean before my little bundle arrives and I don't care if I have to stay up all night to clean it."

The nesting started a few days ago and since then, my house has been perfectly clean without fail. I haven't gone completely overboard with it (like scrubbing the grout with a toothbrush), but for some reason I have just had the absolute need to keep the house spotless lately. It's actually really nice. I feel a lot more peace at night trying to sleep and when I wake up and realize that I don't have to spend the day just trying to get the house clean.

Weekends have been so nice up here in Rexburg because Jason usually has a little more time to have some fun with us. We try to get out and explore a little bit; and by explore I mean drive down main street and finally decide to go to Walmart. We attempt to fool ourselves every weekend into thinking there are a bunch of cool, undiscovered places here, but really I just miss Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and being so close to absolutely any store I could possible imagine. It's a little depressing at times. This weekend we took Levi to get some ice cream, which surprisingly we've never done. As soon as he figured out that the ice cream was sweet and that I wasn't taking it away from him, he was pretty into it.  

  

A nameless post

Coming up with names is not my strong point. Names have to be perfectly fitting. But how do you know what a post should be called until you've written it? More importantly, how do you know what you should name your baby before you know who he is and what he's going to be like?

Jason and I have been stuck in a name rut ever since we found out we were having another boy. A 1/2 hour in our baby name book and a subsequent internet search have become the nightly routine around our house. And yet, we are still undecided; however, we do have a list of names we both mutually don't hate.

Jace
Emmett
Spencer

While you're swishing those around in your mouth, take a look at this beautiful alien baby!

Let's be Adventurers

Over the years, I've lived in a total of 21 houses or apartments. Some for just a few weeks and the longest ones for a few years. This may have instilled in me a certain excitement that comes with moving in to a new place or driving into a town you've never seen before, knowing that you'll be making a life there from scratch. Both Jason and I love going new places and discovering the little treasures every town has.

Lately, Levi and I have been getting a little restless in the house. We've made numerous trips to the grocery store, a nice trip to the Teton Dam Museum, and a couple short ventures to the local library. But most of the time we pretend our house is a huge mansion with many undiscovered rooms that are full of mysteries. This is what Levi looks like when he's found something exciting.

This time it was Goldfish. Of course, he's still in pajamas, no pants, and his hair is getting so long that he has bed head all day long. (Jason cuts it, but has been so busy with homework lately.) I love everything about our days together. Levi is the sweetest little man. He kisses my belly constantly while making a clicking sound with his tongue. He's going to be the best big brother. 

What would I do without my amazing family to go on adventures with? 

The most blog-worthy post of all time...

I'm not really a bragger by nature. I like to be a little more modest and humble and in the background. But what I just did tonight deserves center stage. Seriously. If you get sick of my gloating, I apologize. Drumroll please..... 

I just made the perfect cinnamon rolls!!! They are the most incredible thing I've ever had!

Usually they are too dry on the top, they don't rise the way they should, the centers are still gooey, or something else just botches them completely. But tonight, after probably about 6 years of trying to make good cinnamon rolls, I made INCREDIBLE cinnamon rolls! Even being modest, I would say these are the best cinnamon rolls I have EVER eaten. The bottoms are crunchy with a brown sugar buttery crunch, the centers are perfectly gooey but not doughy in the slightest. And the tops are golden-brown perfection. To top it off, they are covered in delicious maple cream cheese frosting.

Are you dying for the recipe? You will never ever ever need another recipe again. Ever. No joke. Here it is! 

*A few adjustment I made are: First, I used almond milk instead of regular milk and it certainly didn't ruin them. Second, I actually ran out of brown sugar so I used a cup of white sugar and mix a tablespoon of molasses into it with a fork. I also didn't use a stand mixer because I don't have one. So feel free to knead the dough with a spoon and then your hands! It was easy! The original recipes are from here: 

http://sweetannas.com/2012/03/overnight-cinnamon-rolls-with-perfect-cream-cheese-frosting.html
http://sweetannas.com/2013/01/cinnamon-rolls-with-maple-cream-cheese-frosting.html

for the frosting:
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 (8oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla (or maple!) extract

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the powdered sugar and then the maple syrup and vanilla until smooth and fluffy. Add a bit more maple syrup if the frosting is too thick for your liking.

Spread generously on the warm cinnamon rolls as soon as they come out of the oven!

Cinnamon Rolls:



1 cup milk
1/3 cup butter, room temperature
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 cups (or so*) all-purpose or bread flour
for the filling:
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg





Directions:
In a small saucepan, heat the milk and butter together until the butter is melted.  Set aside and let cool to warm (110ºF).

Pour this mixture into the bowl of your stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast over the warm milk/butter mixture with 1 teaspoon of the sugar and let sit and get bubbly and foamy for a few minutes.

Mix in the rest of the 1/2 cup of sugar, the eggs & salt until combined. Mix in most of the flour until combined and then switch to your dough hook attachment.

Knead the dough on med-low speed (2 on a KitchenAid!) until smooth, adding the remaining flour bit by bit if needed.

Lightly grease a large bowl.  Place the kneaded, now smooth, but still soft dough into the bowl and turn once to coat the top of the dough.  Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft free place to rise until doubled in size, about 1 – 1 1/2 hours.

Once the dough has doubled in size (eyeball this, but you should also be able to press down two fingers into the dough and it should leave an indent that doesn’t pop back out!), punch down the dough gently to deflate it.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, cover with a damp towel and let rest for 10 minutes or so.

Sprinkle a bit more flour on top of the dough and roll it out into a large rectangle (about 16×20″ or so!).

In a large bowl (or your clean mixer bowl!) beat together the filling ingredients until smooth and fluffy. Spread the filling evenly over the rolled out dough.

Roll the dough up into a long log and press the seam together (you can use a bit of water on your fingertips to do this if needed!).  Gently cut into 12 rolls with a serrated knife and place the rolls cut side up in a greased 9×13″ baking dish.

Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.  (If you don’t want to make these overnight, then just cover loosely and let rest on the counter for 30 minutes before proceeding).

Remove the rolls from the fridge to take the chill off and preheat the oven to 375ºF for about 30 minutes.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the cinnamon rolls are golden on top and no longer doughy in the middle if you peek with a fork.

When the rolls come out of the oven, frost and serve! And yes! This is an actual picture of the actual amazing cinnamon rolls! Go make them! Now!