Bread Lab

I have learned so much about emulsifiers, oxidants, reducing agents, chemical leaveners, etc. and their purposes in breads, cakes and crackers this week at my AIB training. Over the past 2 days, my team and I have put that knowledge to work and made 21 loaves of bread!!

Here are the fruits of our labor...

Samples from the whole class laid out for review and comparison.

Loaves made by my team using Glucozyme. Pretty, huh?

Happy Valley

I continue the week in The Little Apple (aka Manhattan, Kansas) by enjoying a dinner adventure at Happy Valley. This is a Chinese restaurant recommended by the hotel for something called a Hot Pot.

What is a Hot Pot you ask? A crazy dining experience where they put a Coleman-like stove with a pot of boiling broth on your table for you to cook your own food. The pot was split between a spicy and non-spicy side. I have an affinity to spicy food, but this stuff was TOO MUCH!!

What a wild dinner adventure... and REALLY delicious!! The next time you're in Manhattan, you need to make a stop at Happy Valley.

Daddy's Helpers

Daddy had great helpers this weekend to fix the leak under the kitchen sink. Here are my monkeys... and some monkey wrenches!!

New Jammies

Check out the super cute new jammies for Alaina and Zach.

Lainey's EEG

We've had a scary week with Lainey's health in question. We made a quick trip to the ER when in New Orleans last weekend, a tourist attraction we would have loved to miss, after Lainey's eyes have started to roll up. We called an after-hours nurse line that said these could be seizures and required immediate attention.

Our return trip was so smooth on Monday that I was able to take Lainey to her pediatrician that afternoon to follow up with her ear infection and seizure-like symptons. After Lainey had an "episode" during the visit, we have been on the fast track to determine what's going on. Lainey (and parents) had a Sleep Deprived EEG scheduled for yesterday morning.

The EEG set-up took about as long as the test itself. The set-up includes marking her head for 24 sensors, attaching the sensors and wrapping the head in gauze. Our technician, Carmen, was just great in explaining the process and making us feel as comfortable as possible. Lainey was such a good patient and cried some, but didn't fight any of the process. Carmen commented that Lainey was the first 1-year old that she could remember that didn't require restraints during set-up. Good job, Lainey!!

The EEG analysis with Dr. Baiyeri was scheduled immediately after the EEG. We were thrilled to hear that no seizures were recorded during the test. At this point, epilepsy has been ruled out!! The doctor believes she has a tick or sensory issue that she will most likely outgrow. We need to continue monitoring her for any worsening symptoms (longer or more frequent episodes) and follow-up in a month.

Please keep Lainey in your prayers over the coming months as we try to figure out what could be causing this problem.

Easter Weekend

The family packed up the "Family Truckster" and headed to New Orleans for the Easter weekend. The kids traveled like pros and made the trip very pleasant. We had a great visit with Grammy Noll, Uncle John, Aunt Sandy and Cousin Meghan. We enjoyed a stop in Baton Rouge to visit Mike the Tiger, the Aquarium of the Americas, eating crawfish, swimming and dying Easter eggs.

We can't wait until we make the big journey again!!