In Search of Yiayia's Tsoureki

Thinking of family legacy and stories, I find myself thinking a lot about some of the family recipes that I want to make sure live on. One of those recipes is my Yiayia's (grandma's) Easter Bread recipe, called tsoureki in Greek. Every year growing up, we would receive a huge box of these braided sweet breads. We gave a good number of them to local family and friends, but we would still be left with a good number of loaves for ourselves. I would cherish the morning treat of toasted tsoureki with a little pat of butter on it, for as long as as they lasted.

After my Yiayia passed away in 2000, my dad began shipping boxes of the bread that the ladies at his local church make as a fundraiser. Although I love getting these loaves in the mail too, I want to make sure that this recipe doesn't become a distant memory. So, I've started my charge to learn how to make tsoureki. Let me just start by saying, although I really enjoy cooking, yeast breads have always been a challenge for me. Maybe it is that I lack the patience to knead as much as I should, or maybe it is that truly great breads rely on commercial grade ingredients and ovens. Either way, if Yiayia could do it, I'm going to give a good ole Karnoupakis try!

Today I gave my first try with a recipe that my Nona (godmother) Debbie pointed me to. I managed to find the Mahelpi (a spice made from ground wild cherry seeds) easily enough, but it was the cake yeast that evaded me. No local grocers carried the compressed yeast, so I called speciality stores and finally resorted to calling bakeries to ask(ok, begging) if I could buy some of their stock off of them. Finally, our local Jewish Deli and Bakery, D.Z. Aikens allowed me to buy 1 lb (roughly 12x what my recipe called for). Just another reason to love that place.

Here it is. Looks pretty good, right? Well, the exterior texture is a little less soft than I remember, but the interior has the right chew and suppleness to it. Unfortunately, the 3 tbsp. of sugar it called for wasn't nearly enough. I should have known that Yiayia didn't stick to a recipe. She liked to cook "until it looked right", according to my mom. Brendt and I are estimating that I should increase the sugar to 1/2 cup. I'll keep you posted as to how many tries it takes me to get the recipe right.

Why We Blog

First things first, here is the most up to date belly shot, 25 weeks.

So I've been pondering what to blog about over the past week or so and have been coming up empty handed. Other than the constant baby motion, this leg of the pregnancy is pretty uneventful. I'm feeling great, my energy is high and I'm not too uncomfortable (yet). Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be boring in this way, but I am finding it hard to write something.

Yesterday while reading a new magazine I got, I found this wonderful article about why a woman blogs about her family "Confessions of a Mommy Blogger" http://http://wondertime.go.com/parent-to-parent/article/confession-mommy-blogger.html. Some women she spoke to talked about the connection, "Being a parent is so frustratingly difficult and blindingly beautiful at the same time. Blogs remind me to celebrate the beautiful and that I'm not alone in the difficult,", while others saw the long term humor in it all, "I do picture these kids in college, turning their blogged childhoods into a drinking game, 'Everyone whose mom wrote about their diaper leaking. . .CHUG!'". Either way, I find it a way to relate the real story (sometimes very real) of this adventure we've embarked on.

When Maya(my niece) was born, I realized the importance of being around for such momentous occasions. In the lobby of the hospital there was a rich library of family stories, just like these, that were told by Ryan & Monica's parents and sister. My hope is that although many of you may not be able to be with us at the hospital lobby (don't worry, I won't be there either) that these little musings might help you feel a little closer and jog your memories as to similar stories that you might want to share with us.

Belly Watch 2008!!!

A pregnant belly button is a freakish thing indeed. Mine is ever widening as you can see in this photo.

My high school freshman English teacher was pregnant and she used to say that there was a direct correlation between happiness and the quantity of belly button lint one carried around with them. More belly button lint= more happiness. Inversely, as her belly button expanded, she was increasingly cranky. Ok, so she was a kookie one, but it made us laugh. She also told us she was going to name her child Phlegm, the choice of her husband Bubba (all lies by the way).

Things are well here. We're enjoying having a short term (3 week) roommate in Katie Neubauer, my 2nd cousin's wife. She's a doctor and doing a rotation at San Diego Hospice. She's kept pretty busy at work, but is an easy houseguest, loves the dogs (a miracle really), and even cooks for us!

The Fun of a Registry

Last week we tackled the daunting task of registering. The monster of a store that is Babies R Us was pretty intimidating but with the help of Monica and Krissy, we managed to knock out our registry in one trip. They helped us decipher the 200 different types of bottles, told us which gadgets were lifesavers and which ones were a waste of time. Thank goodness! Because the ability for an industry to play on our fears and insecurities is never more evident than in the baby products industry. How did our parents and grandparents live without a wipe warmer!?

Happy New Year!

Hope you all had a great holiday season. We got a ton done and was able to see most of the family. In the first week off we had Mom, Jim, Katie & Josh here. They worked for three days straight on various house projects, getting FiFi/Filbert's room ready and assembling the crib. I think a conservative estimate would say that they saved us about 8 weekends worth of work. I'll send some photos as the room shapes up. It was amazing to have them here for Christmas! We had a laugh playing Katie's new Wii and even took a walk on the beach on Christmas day.

The second week of our holiday vacation, we went to Tucson to visit the Gideon/Wilson clan. The highlight of the weekend was our niece Maya's baptism. She did great! It was a long service and she got water poured over her head, but she didn't even cry. What a trooper! All and all it was a beautiful day. Here is a photo of the Gideons and one happy Maya.

Later that afternoon we went to Rocky Point, Mexico with Ryan, Monica, Maya, cousin, grandparents and aunts to enjoy New Years at the Sea of Cortez. It was wonderful to be down by the sea, even though it was a bit chilly. We were amazed at how much the whole area had changed. What was once a quiet little get away, is now a bustling resort town. Here is a photo of Brendt and I on Sandy Beach in front of Aunt Dolores's condo.

Now we're back in San Diego, trying to get our lives in order before going back to work. We're also preparing for Katie Neundorf, my cousin's wife. She's going to be staying with us for 3 weeks while she does a rotation at a local hospital.

2008 here we come!

Dad Chimes In

Hey everyone, I thought that I would take a turn this week with notes from the Y zone. We had our first Christmas in San Diego since moving here nine years ago. We were visited by Angie's mother, step-dad, sister and brother in law. With their help, we now have nursery! Katie and Carol painted and built the furniture. We reorganized the garage and spare bedroom to make space, and finished in time for Christmas. Pictures will follow when the room is officially done.



I felt actual baby movement for the first time this week, so I know that the little bump around Angie's midsection is a baby and not just gas. I would say that I would have seen it at the ultrasound, but I spent most of that visit with my eyes close in an attempt to avoid seeing the baby's goods, which apparently he/she is more than happy to show- A LOT.



Christmas was great and we are so grateful for all of the help. Hope everyone's New Year is great, and I look forward to writing more blog posts in the coming months.



Daddy G

It's a . . .

BABY! Ok, lame joke, I know. But I had my ultrasound today. All went well. We managed to keep baby's gender a secret even though the wee one kicked off the the ultrasound with a his/her best spread eagle shot. Luckily we weren't looking, so the secret is still safe.

So here are the photos:

This one is the baby's face

This one is of Filbert/Fifi's tiny little feet

This one is a side view with an arm up

I had the coolest dream the other night. I had a dream that my belly was semi-translucent and that if the baby was turned a certain way, that I could see his/her face. It was the most beautiful little face! Sure beats my terrifying nightmares from a few weeks ago.

Can you believe we're almost 1/2 way there! See you in 20 more weeks precious baby!

It's been a busy day! First we had a doctor's appointment and then a doula interview. At the visit with the doctor, we immediately heard the baby's strong heartbeat and then it was suddenly gone. The doctor said that babies often don't like the sound of the doppler and move quickly to get away from the noise. It took the doctor a while to find the baby again, but we did. He/she moved from a few inches under my right ribs to way down by my left hip. Hope he/she doesn't get used to all that room. It will soon be cramped quarters. Speaking of not fitting, check out the last hurrah for these jeans. They will be soon retired to the pre-pregnancy clothing bin. Here I am at 19 weeks.

Next Tuesday is our big ultrasound. Stay tuned for new photos of Filbert/Fifi!

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For those of you that are novices to an RSS feed (like me), you can drop a link into your Yahoo account, Internet Explorer, Outlook, Blackberry, etc, etc. That way you find out when something has changed on the site. Thanks to my geeky friend (not an insult to a techie) James for the idea. Not sure it is very important right now, but might keep you in the know when FiFi/Filbert decides to grace us with her/his presence. :-)

I wonder what the over/under on this gamble is!? I just found this website that guesses the baby's due date, gender, vital stats, etc. Sort of like an office pool, but with out the need to gamble on it. Feel free to join in the game!

More crazy dreams and Belly photo- 17 weeks So last night I dreamt that the family was all in Hawaii for some vacation. I was pregnant but yet I decided to go surfing, a hobby that I've hung up for the next 5+ months in real life. The water was warm but there was slushy ice in it and the waves broke well past the shoreline onto the street. Ahhh, the things this child is doing to my subconscious. :-)

Back to reality! . . .Here are my next belly photos. I'm noticing that my baby belly is no longer hiding away when I lay on my back, it stays in full view. Good times! I'm wearing my very slimming "Due in May" shirt. You might not notice I'm pregnant.

Until I give you the side view!

Yesterday I went to my twice a year dentist appointment. When it came time to leave, I went to make my next appointment, six months from now. That took me to 3 weeks after my due date. Crazy to think that by that time we'll have the little one here with us! Life is about to get very different.

Well, its been rainy here in SD today, so I went to prenatal yoga and we've been decorating the house for the holidays. They'll be here before we know it.

What it feels like to be baby!
http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/family/11/27/par.being.a.baby/index.html

Here is a link to an interesting article that gives you an inside look as to what babies, newborn to 6 months old, see, think and feel. It's very interesting!

Vivid Dreams
Through my pregnancy I've had very vivid dreams. Usually totally absurd but in great detail and living color.

Last night I dreamt that I went on a vacation up into the mountains with my Dad, my Papou (for those of you who don' t know, my grandfather died when I was 13), and a slew of other people, my old client included. So, random group of people, up in a big cabin surrounded by huge pine trees. We were there for several days and when it came time to pack up and leave, Papou was in a huge hurry. Dad was very disappointed because he didn't want to leave early, but he had to because of Papou.

When we were ready to leave, we went to a small cliff overlooking a huge river. We just jumped in with all of our belongings. It was very warm and refreshing and we calmly floated down the river until we got to where our cars were parked. We all got into our cars and drove away.

What will my crazy pregnant brain think of next?

11/19/2007 Rockin Baby!
So I've been feeling the baby move around for the past week or two. Recently it has gotten stronger, feeling like a mini-kick boxing class. Last night the baby was really rockin' and rollin' so I ran over to Brendt and put his hand on my belly. We sat still for a minute and sure enough, baby performed on cue and gave Dad two swift kicks. Needless to say, we were both excited.

11/14/2007 Dr. Lafferty Visit
Went to see Dr. Lafferty today. We heard Fifi/Filbert's booming strong heart beat. It was nice to check in to know that baby is ok. I'm feeling a bit better now that I'm out of the 1st trimester, though I am still haunted by the random vomit now and again. Oh well, at least I'm not exhausted all the time. I started prenatal yoga this week. It is a very gentle class, but it is a good stretch. It's also fun to feel like I have time to connect with Fifi/Filbert and to see other women at all stages of pregnancy. Not to mention it makes my hips and back feel better. I started showing a bit the beginning of November (check out the belly album) and I think it's finally becoming real for Brendt. He's started talking to my belly and getting into reading up on carseats, cribs and the like. Next month we'll have our big ultrasound! Can't wait to see Fifi/Filbert again!

So here are my 15 week photos. Looks Like I ate too much at the buffet!! :-)

10/10/2007 Baby's First Photos!
Today we went for our first ultrasound. It was exciting to see the wee child in there, with his/her little heart beating. From here on out I will call the child Filbert or FiFi because that is what Brendt and I are calling her/him right now. Just testing out the names. In any case, I know it looks like a ink blot test, but that's my baby! And Filbert is measuring a week bigger than expected. :-) Great, 20lb. baby on the way. Hooray!

9/13/2007 First Dr. Appointment
Yesterday I went to my first dr. appointment. It was a short meeting with a nurse, where they took another pee pregnancy test. 4th test, still positive. Hooray! They took blood for a variety of tests and then gave me pregnancy 101. It wasn't anything shocking, but I'm sure to some it is a necessary little bit of education. My next appt. (Oct. 10) will be with a nurse practitioner and will involve an ultrasound. Very exciting! It's just a few days before we go back to Arizona and start telling family!

Ok, so the photo looks like a Jenny Craig Before Photo, but really, there is a baby in there!

9/13/2007 Morning Noon & Night Sickness
So this week I've started feeling more nausea. Sometimes it's just a little stomach flip that I can keep under control and other times its all I can think about. For the first time today I actually gagged. BLAH it happened to be while taking my asthma med and then again later when taking my omega vitamin (smells like fish, not too shocking). I'm so happy to be pregnant, that I'll forgive this little annoyance. I'm sure it's just one of many to come. Looking forward to trimester 2!

Ok, so begin retro posting. So much has happened since I last blogged, but all for the best. Biggest news is that we're pregnant. I'm transfering over my journals from babyfit.com, so the post dates on Blog spot might be off.

8/31/2007
Today we found out that we were pregnant. After being 3 days late, I decided to take a home pregnancy test in the morning. There was the faintest of lines, so I was a little excited, but cautious. In the evening after much encouragment from my BabyFit friends, I took a 2nd test made by a differant company. This one was much more solid. Hubbie and I went out and had a nice dinner. We toasted with pro secco and he drank it all. Guess I'd better get used to that!

Look! Evidence! Brendt made me take 3 of these before he'd believe it was true.

So the latest news in my life is my change of tasking. I'm still working for the same company, but instead of doing computer security for the government, I'm working on a project for a bank. Most changingly (I'm making up words here), I often have a change in location. I'm working out of San Francisco 4 days a week. Most weeks this will mean me flying up on Mondays and back on Thursdays. This past weekend Brendt joined me on Wednesday and we stayed the weekend over. We had great fun wandering the streets of SF and had an amazing jaunt to the wine country of Sonoma. With 6 other couples we were warmly welcomed to the Benzinger Winery, an amazing farm and winery.

All and all, as I discover this fine city(and region), I'm hoping to bring along a camera and share a little each day with you.

This morning I awoke to a fog soaked morning and rose for a run. I charged up California Street
and at the top I found Grace Cathedral greeting me, a majestic building that is a lot like Notre Dame. The bronze doors called to me, so I ran up the cathedral steps to take a closer look. After viewing the doors, I turned around and almost gasped at a labyrinth made out of stone inlays on the ground. There were was 1 person walking the labyrinth and several dozen nearby doing tai chi (did I mention I ran through China Town?). At the top of Nob Hill, with the city by the bay completly socked in with fog, I could see no more of San Francisco than I could at the ferry landing, but somehow I had taken in a great deal on the way up.