Semi-homemade Chocolate Cupcakes with Homemade Marshmallow Topping

as you all can probably tell i have become a little obsessed with making cupcakes. now, since i am no expert baker i have greatly adopted the concept of having them be semi homemade. this past week EM and i found a coupon on duncan hines cake mix. cake mix make the best cupcakes! my mother in law had another get together with her friends, so i decided to make some goodies for her to take over.

i started off with making simple, and incredibly moist might i add, chocolate cupcakes.

it is incredibly important that you allow the cupcakes to cool fully before you even think of putting any sort of frosting or topping on them. 

then i had the idea of doing something a bit different...marshmallow. i had never made a marshmallow topping before, but how hard could it be? 

you start out with some simple ingredients ...

allow the egg whites to sit out and become as close to room temp. as possible. then in a kitchen aid mixing bowl combine all ingredients except the vanilla. mix, and place over a pot with about an inch of boiling water. (make sure the water doesnt touch the bowl) and whisk until all the sugar is dissolved, about 6 minutes. remove the bowl from the heat and place back into the stand mixer. beat on medium for about a minute then on high for 5, or until you get nice stiff peaks. add your vanilla and mix for another minute until fully incorporated. then BOOM! yummy yummy marshmallow frosting. 

with a spatula scoop the frosting into a piping bag, i personally use a gallon size zip lock bag for easier filling, and pipe onto the cooled cupcakes. 

allow the frosting to set for about 30 minutes then brulee the top with a kitchen torch or long fireplace lighter. 

when EM came home he was able to taste one before they were gone, and he loved them! 

here is the list of ingredients and quantities for the frosting. 8 large egg whites, at room temp. 2 cups granulated sugar. 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar. 1/8 teaspoon fine salt. 2 teaspoons of vanilla. (i cut all the amounts in half and still had plenty left over)

XOMB

A Letter to My Baby

God is SO good! the closer and closer i get to meeting S the more emotional i become. if you had asked me a year or two ago where i would be now i would certainly never imagine that i would be where i am today...expecting my first baby. a perfect baby boy.
i cant even begin to describe the emotion i feel when i think about him. even now as he kicks my ribs :) i had always imagined that i would have a little girl first then a bunch of boys...but they say if you want to tell God a joke, tell Him your plans. how true. i could not be happier than i am this day knowing that soon i will get to meet my son. the amount of love i have for him already is indescribable. just the thought brings me to tears.
i cannot wait to hold his tiny body in my arms. though i will miss having him within me. something so incredibly special that any mom understands. i felt him move before anyone else could.


sebastian,

my sweet little boy. you are so dearly and purely loved. your daddy and i couldnt have asked for a greater blessing. he always tells you good night and kisses my belly, telling me how much he loves you and how he cant wait to meet you. you have taken a man who was afraid of not being ready to be a dad, to someone who cannot wait to hold you and that smiles at the thought of you. that is the greatest gift you could ever give him. because of you we have become an even stronger family. you are so small yet what you have already accomplished is so great.
we are close to a month away from your birth and we practice every night for that wonderful event. i know it will be one of the toughest days of my life, with the most amazing of outcomes. we get to bring you, our son into the world. i just pray that your daddy will be there, for it's something i truly dont want him to miss. he always tells me how great i will be, even if he cant be there...but i know it would kill him if he couldnt see you make your first appearance into this great big world.
we have loved you from the minute we knew you were in our lives and that is something that will never change! that love will only get deeper and deeper. you are so blessed to have such an amazing man as your daddy. he is already so protective of you, touching my belly ever so gently, never wanting to do anything that could remotely hurt you. the day we were able to see your little face was such a wonderful day! you were already so handsome! and your daddy had a grin from ear to ear seeing his little boy.
you are our heart. and we are so blessed to have you.

love you forever and always,

your mama

29 weeks our last echo-cardiogram 

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Crochet Away

so these past few days have been quite a doozy! with being extremely tired and starting to really feel the physical effects of pregnancy. i easily have more nausea now than i ever had these past 32 almost 33 weeks. back pains and stomach pains are a new part of the repertoire but that means hes growing and getting bigger. closer and closer to when we get to meet him! all in all though things have been great! he is on the constant move, doing flips as we speak.

this past sunday i hit 32 weeks (check out little ones to see a belly update) and it was superbowl sunday! we made quite a feast! even made blue and orange cupcakes, clearly EM and i cheered on the bronocs...even though we ended up being more than a little disappointed.

blue cupcakes with orange buttercream

i ended up with a little more than anticipated...3 trays of mini cupcakes. though they didnt last long. oops. 

today, aside from recovering from the massive sugar rush, i have been spending my time crocheting and attempting to finish the baby blanket im making for S. still have a ways to go before i can add the border, but i will definitely post a picture when it is completed. assuming that day ever arrives. 

now break over and back to the blankie!

XOMB

Feeling It

today was supposed to be the day of the ML gala but EM isn't feeling very good so turns out that is no longer in the cards for us. poor thing. so this snow day (now week due to the amount) has turned into a mini vaca. granted not the good kind.

the only downside to all the snow is the city not knowing what to do with it. none of the roads were plowed except the interstate, which makes getting to work for a lot of people just not plausible. so EM was able to enjoy his own version of not having school.

so here we are today relaxing and hoping EM feels better.

now for a pregnancy update:

ill be 32 weeks this sunday and im finally starting to feel this pregnancy. the indigestion has become something i am not all too fond of, not to mention other side effects that are far from pleasant. and sleeping has clearly become an optional activity.

ive realized that your third trimester, at least for me, is by far the worst. i feel exactly the way i did during my first, super tired, except this time it's a lot harder to move. the most amazing silver lining is that S will be here soon! we cant wait to hold him and kiss those amazing cheeks.

we are slowly getting everything ready for his arrival. EM (with my sad excuse for help) put the crib and bassinet together. we were hoping our cat wouldn't find them to be the greatest toys ever, but we were wrong.


i tried to get a picture of him sleeping but he has a killer sense of hearing. not only did rugby have to use the bassinet as his new cat cave, but he had to use the blanket im crocheting for S as his new pillow. i don't believe any of the myths about cats harming babies, but unfortunately he will be booted from our room so he doesnt think he can cosleep with the baby. not too sure how he will take that. he is truly like our first child, snuggles up with us every night, so this may not be the easiest process.

i cant believe tomorrow is february already. not only is it the time frame we gave ourselves to train rugby to sleep without us but it means the beginning of what i call, baby shower month! next friday a dear friend of mine, due around the same time i am with her first little boy as well, is having her baby shower! i am so excited to shower this amazing mama with so much love for her and her baby!

then...

two weeks after her shower it's my shower! and then it's practically march! i can't believe the big day is almost here! im praying that S doesn't decide to arrive when EM is away for work. EM is supposed to be out of town the first week of march and if S is anything like his mother (also a first born) he could be 3 weeks early...which would be that week.

i don't know what i would do without EM by my side. all my family is out of town and he is the only person aside from my own mother that i would want there. i guess this is one of those moments where you simply need to put your faith in God and let Him take care of it. He hasn't let me down yet, so i have no need to fret.

although it doesn't hurt to pray a little more.

XOMB

Little Bit of Sweetness

so EM has been stressed at work and i havent known what to do to help him relax. it just seems like he is in a funk...but any high pressure job will do that to you. so in an attempt to put a smile on his face when he gets home i made some goodies for him to enjoy.

funfetti cupcakes with lemon buttercream frosting

i love to cook but have never had the patience to bake, especially when it comes to the piping of the frosting. generally it turns into a gloopy mess that ends with my scrapping the whole project. a little dramatic now that i look back. so looking at these i am quite proud of myself. i want to start experimenting with more flavours...yes this was from a box (frosting excluded) but a non baker needs to start somewhere! these are my first non brick cupcakes, and thats an accomplishment!

i want to be the best mama possible for S and one thing i loved about my mother is that she could cook or bake anything! every birthday cake we ever had she made; once making a treasure chest shaped one (that opened!) that was filled with gold coins. i want S to be proud of his mama and have that memory when he grows up! 

since i am not the happy baker, as i have mentioned, i figured i should start now on the journey to cupcake mastery!

i will keep ya'll posted on my future baking endeavors.

XOMB

Fit Mama

so in this midst of folding laundry, something im sure all you moms enjoy, i cant help but get super excited/distracted thinking about the event that is happening friday.
wait for it....
we are FINALLY joining a gym! having been a gym addict for years, it is quite exciting! ive always said that when i became pregnant i would never give up working out or staying fit, but thats easier said than done!
of course i know the benefits of being active during pregnancy but as any of you moms already know...its not always possible. whatever your barrier may be, things happen in life but the benefits of staying fit during pregnancy are huge!
better now than never!
since i am dedicated to having a natural birth this is more of a necessity than simple want. birth is like a marathon, or so i have heard, and what better way to succeed and push through the pain of a marathon than to train. a good friend of mine is pregnant as well, due just a week before i am and she recommended looking into the bradley method of birth. i cannot wait to buy the book and get started!
this method has the highest success rate of natural births. from what i have researched so far, eating high levels of protein, doing an insane amount of kegels (yes ladies there are multiple benefits to this one!), as well as some other exercises are key components to finishing this marathon.
kegels, though every woman has heard about them for their other benefits, having a kick butt birth is one most people fail to mention.
doing kegels is a great workout! (though you dont break a sweat) but what do you use to push that baby out? MUSCLES! all muscles need to be strengthened, the stronger they are the easier the inevitable will be!

now for overall fitness the fitter you are while pregnant the easier it will be to bounce back, for lack of a better term, after you have that bundle of joy. everyone has heard the wonders of breast feeding in helping you shed that pregnancy weight but what so many women forget is that the more muscle you already have the easier it is to burn the fat.

so here is the plan, not only do i want to increase my cardio (which as of now has been lacking) and get back to lifting weights (always done in a safe method, you are pregnant dont forget) but i want to start yoga. natural birth is all about how you cope with pain and how you can train your body to relax and find your zen, what better to assist in that search than a yoga class?

i truly believe that staying healthy is not merely something you deserve but something your baby deserves as well! your baby deserves a healthy mom that can keep up with everything he or she throws your way.

i will definitely report any physical changes i can see along the way.

XOMB

Pregnancy Brain

i really have been horrible with updating new posts, and for that i am sorry!
the holidays add so much added stress that it is easy to get overwhelmed.

however it also brought a lot of blessings! EM and i were able to visit my family, something i was incredibly thankful for!

being Catholic, Christmas is such an important holiday and simply being surrounded by those you love makes it so special! we were blessed with so many great gifts for S! bassinet, stroller, car seat and crib all taken care of! we are so thankful! not to mention we were gifted an ergobaby carrier, something i cannot wait to use, as ive heard only amazing things about it!

on a non holiday related note....i am incredibly excited to announce that i have reached the third trimester! EM and i couldnt be more excited!

this week is going to be a big week, the final time we get to see S during his last echo-cardiogram. so far every appointment has shown a strong healthy heart which is such an incredible blessing! 

praise God!

i have been fortunate enough to have had (so far at least) a very easy pregnancy, no major morning sickness or the ever dreaded cankles...again now that i spoke of it, i am probably doomed. 

something i have started to notice, is that these past few days it has gotten substantially more difficult to sit up from a lying position. not so much because he weighs too much or anything but because it physically hurts to engage my "abs" or lack their of. 

so far it has been such a great adventure and cannot wait to see what these last few months have in store for us! 

XOMB

p.s check out my little ones page to see bump pics!