Three lessons were learned today.

• We found out what happens when Andy gets too hot.
• We found out what happens when Andy doesn't get burped enough during a feeding.
• We found out what happens when these things are combined in a single excursion to the shopping center.

Yep, we were a little amibitious and took Andy to Babies 'R' Us and Old Navy, only to be rewarded with not one but two monstrous spit ups. (And then a third once we got him home!) He totally soaked his outfit, got changed, and then totally soaked his backup outfit. We need a bigger diaper bag, because 1 set of backup clothes is clearly not enough. Clearly.

It seems like every time we take Andy out of the house something bad happens. Last time, we spent a single night away from home, Laura comes down with mastitis! Again! We're definitely not ready to go gallavanting about, as much as we'd like to spend our anniversary (coming up, June 9th) up in Vermont (in the same place we honeymooned, no less!).

You're never leaving again Dad. Never!

I've always thought that my "intestinal troubles" have been primarily psychological in nature. They always seem to strike at the most inopportune time. Right as we're about to leave on a 20-hour drive to Florida. Or perhaps when we're out the door for a friends party. My morning commute used to be hellish -- you never knew when the T would decide to take an hour and a half to travel a few miles. Nevermind being late, the thought of being stuck on a train-car still strikes fear deep into my bowels.

That all seems to be different now. Frankly I'm a little scared that even writing about this will bring harsh retribution, but for the past 6 weeks, (at least to my sleep-deprived memory*) I've been totally fine. Laura thinks it's probably because I always have something else more important to worry about. She might be right. Frankly, I don't care what the deal is, as long as I can stay clear of planning out my day around my bathroom.

* When I went to make coffee this morning, I put the coffee pod in the machine and hit the button ... without putting a cup under the spout. I didn't realize this until it was done brewing and I went to fetch it.

I haven't been able to cook something new in a long time, so I overcompensated yesterday and went hog-wild and cooked eggs benedict, maple walnut scones, and a vegetable barley soup for dinner.

The eggs benedict were actually way easier than I was expecting. Of course, I overcooked the eggs a little, so we didn't have the slightly runny yolks that I was looking forward to. The hollandaise sauce was ridiculously easy. I found a recipe that uses a blender instead of a double boiler, so it was basically put a bunch of ingredients in and turn it on. I stored it in a pre-heated thermos while I finished the rest of the meal. Hollandaise sauce isn't something you can reheat. Although I can never be sure, it sounds like Laura did actually enjoy it. She doesn't usually like eggs, although she doesn't seem to mind whatever I make her, whether it be a nice omelet or scrambled eggs.

The maple walnut scones were from a recipe that I got off the Cooking News a while back. Its just your typical scone batter, but with maple and walnuts. Really just what you'd expect. They were good, but I think they'd be better with a little maple glaze on top as well. I hadn't made scones in a really long time. Probably more than a year. My technique has improved drastically. Still, I'm not sure if I'd be up to throwing something like this together and popping it in the oven before an afternoon tea with friends. It's still a little too much involved for that.

Finally, the vegetable barley soup is from a recipe that one of Laura's mother-friends gave us. This fantastically nice woman, Cynthia, has been such a help this past month. She's given us probably 75% of our wardrobe, and has dropped off several meals! Laura met her at the Knitting Room during one of her knitting classes. She made us this soup a while ago, and it lasted several meals. And so I made it yesterday. I couldn't find "quick cooking barley", so I had to settle with the quickest cooking that I could find. I think that threw the recipe off a little, since it came out as more 'stew' than 'soup'. But that's okay with me frankly.