Bomb Brownies!

My mom and I have been enjoying the best brownies! My previous favorite recipe is Ina Garten's Outrageous Brownies. They are fabulous, but these are even better!

Brownies

3/4 cup butter
5 squares unsweetened baking chocolate
1 1/2 cups-2 cups sugar (depending on how sweet you like your brownies. I tend to use less sugar for a more dark chocolate flavor.)
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1 cup nuts and chopped chocolate

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Melt butter and chocolate together.
Add sugar, eggs, vanilla, and flour.
3. Mix in nuts and chocolate.
4. Pour batter into a greased 8x8 inch pan.
Bake for 35 minutes.

1 week

Zackary is 1 week old today. I tried to take a cute picture but he preferred to be squishy. He is back to his birth weight. I am loving him!

Max and Mia

We have had a pretty great start at home with baby Zac. Max and Mia are doing really well. They are keeping busy with my mom and soccer games. They are both really helpful with the baby. I love them both and I am trying to give them all of the attention that they need. Some mornings have been crazy and Mia has ended up eating cookies and milk for breakfast. She didn't complain! I am looking forward to watching our family grow and enjoy each new day.

After Much Debate...

This blog is going Private!
I still want to hear from all of you and to include you in all of our happenings. If you have an interest please leave me a comment with your email address and I will be sure to send you an invite to view the new private blog!
I have adjusted the comments so that your email addresses will not be accessible to anyone other than myself!
Thanks!
-Jessica
(P.S. Your posts will not show up but I am getting them!)

Home!

Zac and I came home from the hospital yesterday morning. I was so ready to be home! I missed Max and Mia. I missed Ty, and I was really tired of hospital food!
While Zac was napping Mia helped me make some chocolate chip cookies in the kitchen. I was really in desperate need. They turned out fabulous and we had great fun eating them.
Little Zac is so sweet. I am loving having a little baby boy to cuddle. Mia is a great help. She gets the diapers out when Zac needs to be changed. Max is being a big help by sleeping through the night. Someone in this house ought to do it!
Ty has been amazing! He is the best and I am so glad to have him. I am going to miss him tons when he goes back to work next week!

Meeting Mr. Zac

Mia was so excited to meet little Zac. She is calling him Baby. She gave his little forehead lots of kisses. Max is being a very responsible big brother and keeps asking when baby Zac is coming home.

He is a very sweet little bundle and I am loving holding him and smelling him and kissing him. Can't wait to get him home!

Zackary Ty Newman!

Just before we left the house this morning we took one belly picture. This is me pre-baby. We dropped the kids off at a friend's house and headed for the hospital.

Everything went really well and little Zac made his debut just after 1:00. He weighed 7lbs 10 oz, and was 20 1/2 inches long.

We think he is pretty cute and are so excited that he is here!

This is by no means a glamour shot. Just me and Zac. So happy to have him!

Tomorrow!

We will be heading to the hospital first thing in the morning to have baby Zac!

Guthrie!

We were all up early this morning to get ready for Max's soccer game and pictures. We were so sad to learn that both were cancelled because of the rain. We decided to head to the Amish country store and bakery in Guthrie, Kentucky. (Because Kentucky is a happening place to be!)
I wanted to go to the country store because I was almost completely out of spices and this particular store sells them in huge amounts for the best prices! I had so much fun shopping. I am so excited for holiday baking!
After the store we went to Schlabach's Bakery. They have the best fried apple pies ever!

On our way out of Guthrie we stopped at this little Barbeque place. It was some of the best BBQ I have ever eaten! We ate outside and the kids were super excited by what they saw next door.

An enormous cow! Is there any better way to advertise a store that sells lottery tickets? I think not.

Max GQ

Max got a haircut this morning in preparation for soccer team pictures tomorrow. I think he looks great and his little buzzed head is impossible to resist.

Quick Update!

I am still alive and I am still pregnant!
I have my next appointment Monday morning and we will be scheduling an induction for next week at that time.
There is a part of me that feels like this pregnancy has gone on forever and for long enough, and there is another part of me that cannot believe I am about to have another baby!
Until the big day arrives I am trying to keep up with housework, eating lots of cookies while I still can, pretending Mia is still a baby, and spending hours looking at tiny baby clothes!
Hoping Zac comes soon!

Max's First Game!

This morning we had Max's first soccer game! He was so excited! He tried to get himself dressed an hour early.

Mia wanted a good look at Max in Uniform.

The pre-game huddle with coach Spurlock. Today's game was vs. team Germany.

The starters!
There are only 3 players on the field at a time from each team. The playing field is pretty small!

A little bit of the action. Max is #2. He did a great job and scored 3 goals!

Max was a happy and sweaty little guy after the game. He says he loves soccer and is ready for another game next week :)

Six Years Ago Today....

Quick Trip Downtown

Ty is home today! He got an early morning text message that said he did not need to come in. Hurray! We took the kids downtown to the farmer's market. I had never been and it was so much fun. We let the kids pick out some little pumpkins. I bought a bunch of cherry tomatoes that Max and Mia quickly ate almost all of; who knew they were better than candy! After shopping at the market we went inside to the food court for lunch. We decided on greek food and shared a gyro plate. Who doesn't love a good gyro? It was very delicious. We let Max and Mia pick out a treat and then we headed home. Mia fell asleep in the car and we are looking forward to the rest of our afternoon with Ty!
FYI: I will be 38 weeks pregnant tomorrow and I am really starting to feel it. When Ty first told me he would be home today I said, "Well, let's just have the baby today since you're home." He laughed at me. Oh Well.... maybe tomorrow! :)

I am sooooo Spolied!

My friend, Stephanie, threw me the best baby shower! I was super hesitant to agree at first, because this is my third baby and I thought it might be weird, but it was just what I needed!

The girls were so sweet. Everyone brought the nicest gifts and there was delicious food in abundance. We joked as we huddled around the food table and listened to music from "Dirty Dancing".

Liz made baby Zac some adorable bibs.

I also got some great bath and body works gear, just for me. What a fun idea. Gifts for the mom to spoil herself!

Here we have our little crew. Stephanie, Liz, Esther, me(with my cupcake), Rebecca, Alayna (the lovely cupcake maker), and Chantelle! Meghan was taking the picture! Thank you everyone for coming and spoiling me. I had a great time!

As mentioned before I am somewhat obsessed with these cupcakes. Alayna makes the best cupcakes! These were chocolate with chocolate buttercream and stuffed with vanilla caramel filling! So good to be pregnant and not counting calories right now!

A perfect end to my night!

Labor Day!

We had a really fabulous Labor Day Holiday! It was very fun to have an extra day with Ty. We left just after 1 to meet some friends for an afternoon of skeet shooting. This is what Max and Mia looked like when we arrived.

They were both soon awake and eager to watch all of the manly men and brave women shoot their firearms. We made all the kids wear earplugs so that they would not go deaf.

I found an old bird's nest in a tree and we took it down to investigate. Mia thought it was very fascinating, but she was concerned about the lack of birds in the nest.

Ty looking super sexy with camo pants and a big gun.

Me looking very round with a big gun.

After the shootout we decided to have a cookout. Our friend Blake makes the best steaks so that is what he brought. Rob and Lisa brought fresh tomatoes from their garden and a pie. Ty and I brought corn on the cob. There was root beer, beans, salad, and brownies. It was all very delicious and very fun. It was a great day!
(A little live action from the shooting at the tobacco fields)

More Pumpkins!

This time in cookie form!
I have never been a huge fan of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, but Ty loves them. Today we had a potluck after church and I decided to bring these cookies. I came up with a version that I thought was really delish.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  
• 1/2 cup butter softened
  
• 1 egg
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Combine all ingredients and drop onto greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

A Little Sparkle

Hurray! I love Hobby Lobby, and I love fall, and I love glitter! The combination of these favorites led to last nights craft project. I found these great little pumpkins at Hobby Lobby and I decided to coat them with a layer of mod podge and glitter! They turned out very festive.

A little creativity

I went to Hobby Lobby this morning in search of some little pumpkins that I could cover with glitter for fall decorations. I did not find what I was looking for so we decided to have a little craft time for the kids instead. Max picked out a little wooden train to paint and Mia got a little car.

Please excuse Mia's lack of clothing, but she cannot be trusted with a paintbrush. As usual Max was much more detail oriented in the painting department. Mia splashed some paint on her car and then hid it in the kitchen cupboard and ran outside with a brownie.

I love these little projects that we do. It is always a mess, but I think it is worth it!

A New Month

It is September 1st!
This is a Big month. I have been waiting for September all year!
We are expecting our little boy this month! Our little Zac Isaiah should be here no later than the 25th. My parents are flying in and I can't wait for them to see Nashville in the fall. I am hoping our beautiful weather continues. I am excited for some apple picking and for pumpkin to start making appearances in recipes again. I love the cookouts and get togethers of summer, but fall is pretty great too.