While the hubby is away....

I baked, cleaned, cooked, and decorated!! And I'm about to get rid of a 1 year old dog. He is definitely testing my patience this weekend by following me everywhere and getting into everything! But then he does something cute like lay by my feet and look up at me with his big puppy dog eyes and I can't get rid of him...I have to cuddle him!

Let me backtrack a little bit because I've been "really slacking" as I've been told by a fellow blogger (hi Tara!) She pushed and now I'm posting, that's what good friends do!

Last weekend was my first baby shower! It was hosted by my mom and my Aunt Sharon.

Here is my mom....and a chubby faced me, Andy, and my Uncle Rick in the background! Taken at my house last Saturday.

                                             And my Aunt Sharon and I at the shower.

It was fabulous! Fabulous food, fabulous gifts, and most of all fabulous people! I had so much fun and can't believe that I have that many friends!! Thanks and love to all of you who came!

                                                I had a pair of emergency flip flops in the car!

So with last weekend being busy busy busy, I haven't had much time to get anything prepared for the baby's pending arrival. Until yesterday. Andy was off having (one of) his last boys weekend before being a daddy and I was home to get stuff done. And I did!

Friday night I decided to bake. Now don't get too excited. I baked something I already posted about. Pipka Cake but I made blueberry instead of cranberry and I froze it for a future breakfast. It's yummy and easy and you should make it. If you come up with a creative ingredient, please share it with me. To freeze it: I let it sit overnight covered in Saranwrap. Then in the morning I double layered the tin foil and labeled it. Simple as that.

If you are looking for a delicious Red Velvet recipe I will have to contact my Aunt Janice for you because she made the most amazing Red Velvet Cake for my baby shower last weekend. Despite the 90 degree heat when traveling from Belleville to Middleton the cake survived! It was amazing and I ate the leftovers for dinner a few nights in a row!

Yesterday I started a mini-decorating project and made Sloppy Joe's to freeze at the same time. I found a quote online that I printed off and I knew I wanted it in the nursery. I knew I wanted a white frame but I didn't want the mat to also be white...just too much white. So, I used the leftover yellow paint from one of the stripes in the room and painted the mat. I know what a genius I am! The only money spent was $10 on the frame and if I wasn't as lazy as I am, I could have found a cheaper frame.

I painted the mat at the same time I was making Sloppy Joe's to freeze. I don't have a picture (Andy took the camera this weekend and the iphone just isn't the same). But here is the recipe that I follow:

Sloppy Joe's

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 cup diced onion
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons mustard (dried or prepared)
1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Brown the ground beef and onion in a large skillet.
2. When the beef is brown, drain.
3. Stir in brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup, mustard, and sal.
4. Simmer for 30 minutes.
5. Serve or freeze in my case.

Delicious and easy.

Now as a thank you for reading this entire post. I'll share the most updated picture of Baby Girl Bohacek!

Yes that's her hand over her right eye. And she definitely has my pouty lips! Happy Sunday!

Red Velvet Brownies

I have recently fallen in love with all things Red Velvet. I have to give PF Changs a shout out for their Red Velvet Cake....it's to die for and it's served in a tall shot glass. I have been searching for an interesting Red Velvet Cake recipe for awhile and finally found this one on www.bakedperfection.com. I just served these brownies to my teachers at school and they loved them! 

Red Velvet Layer:1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup cocoa powder
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon red food coloring
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
2 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Cream Cheese Layer:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 by 8-inch baking pan, and set aside.

Brownie layer: Add melted butter to a large bowl and add the sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, salt, food coloring, and vinegar, in that order, mixing between additions. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl and stir it into the cocoa mix. Fold in the flour until lightly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, saving 1/4 cup of the batter for the top.

Cream cheese layer: Blend together the cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Gently spread the cream cheese layer on top of the brownie batter in the pan. Dollop the remaining brownie batter over the cream cheese layer. Using a skewer or the tip of a knife, drag the tip through the cream cheese mixture to create a swirl pattern. Bake the brownies for 30 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before cutting.