Baby Alexander Lucas Wu

Baby Alexander Lucas Wu decided to arrive on August 24, 2012 at 13:20. Labor was extremely tiring, 15 hours, and I was a little delirious at the end of it. All I can remember was there was a lot of pushing and screaming. I would never have been able to make it through the long process were it not for Ming soothing and coaching me through the entire process. I was so relieved once Alexander was born and I heard the sweet cry of his voice. The entire ordeal of pregnancy and labor became a mere memory when I first held Alex and all I could feel was wonder and amazement.

No one can accurately describe what it feels like to become a mother. You can read about everyone's thoughts and descriptions but until it actually happens to you, you won't be able to truly understand until you experience the amazing feeling of holding your baby for the first time. Becoming a mom is one of the most rewarding experiences in life. The mere act of holding him will part all of the clouds in a dreary day and lift up your spirits.

I realize I echo the thoughts of many first time moms but I never tire of looking at Alex, even if he's asleep. In my eyes, granted they are quite tinged with parental pride, he is perfect and I could stare at him for hours. Each of his little movements and mannerisms are a source of wonder and amazement to me.

Welcome to the world my darling baby boy.

Lots of Inspiration

I only intended to check out one book from the library. Instead, as oft happens, I found many other books. I now have a ton of inspiration for new dishes to cook. ^_^

Bojangles

Bojangles is a fast food chain similar to Popeyes. We don't have it in the Bay Area but it's pretty prevalent in the South. I went there for the first time today and I have to say that I was very impressed. The fried chicken had good flavor and all of the pieces were of a decent size (not too skimpy.) The biscuits were light and fluffy -- much better than any other fast food chain's biscuits. We had pinto beans and dirty rice as our sides. The sides were, by far, much better than Popeyes. I find the sides at Popeyes to be bland and these were more flavorful.

The two dishes that Bojangles offers which I haven't seen offered elsewhere in the Bay Area were sweet tea and sweet potato pie. Yes, McDonalds offers a sweet tea but I am going to ignore that fact. >_< This was my first taste of sweet tea and it just isn't for me. It is way too sweet; it feels like I'm drinkng something which would give me an instant sugar high. The sweet potato pie, however, was really pretty good. It's like a McDonald's apple pie except that it is fried and the filling is mashed sweet potato. It's so good. I'd go back just for the pie in a heartbeat ... although one can only eat so much Southern food without worrying about all of that fried food adding up.

I'm definitely going to visit Bojangles again the next time I come to the south. Yum!

Diet Check Point

I've been on a diet for about 1.5 weeks now and it's getting easier with time. The first diet I started on was great to give me a kick start. I did it as more of a detox from all the rich food I ate while on vacation. I lost several pounds in a week and kept the weight off for a week off after that! It was a great way to give me the confidence boost I needed to start losing weight. I don't know if I'd do the raw food diet again but it certainly gave quick results and I don't regret being on it.

After the raw food/detox diet I waited a week to see how much weight I'd put back on. I ended up putting on very little weight back on, relatively speaking. I'm currently being very careful about what I eat (read that as strictly limiting how much food goes into my tummy.) This current diet also seems to be netting some positive results. It's hard not eating everything that I crave but I think the sacrifice is worth it for the amount of positive results (or should I say weight loss.)

The biggest change is probably the switch in white rice to brown rice. I found a brown rice which I actually don't mind eating and it's made eating healthier much easier. If you're looking for a way to lose weight I'd recommend getting on a diet which gives you immediate, quick results (such as possibly fasting or any of the other million diets out there) then to get on a slower diet which is easier to maintain in the long(er) run. For me I was on the raw food diet then started to count calories for the secondary diet ... and I'm happy to say that I've lost about 4% of my total body weight already. ^_^

Yo-Plus Blueberry Acai Yogurt

I found a yogurt that I love. Normally I think that most yogurt tastes pretty much the same. This yogurt, however, actually tastes really good! Not only does it contain probiotics but it also has fiber. I look forward to eating this for breakfast every morning. It also has much less sugar than other yogurts (w/o having to resort to a fake sweetener.)

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope everyone had a good Valentine's day tonight. My evening was fabulous. Dinner consisted of a 2000 Merlot, a beautiful USDA prime NY steak, and porcini mushroom ravioli. Dessert consisted of the best chocolate in the world.

Yes, I had a terrific evening. I hope yours was equally memorable. Sorry folks, no pictures.

Best Breakfast

What's the best breakfast you can ask for on a cold Monday morning? It's a fresh-from-the-oven croissant! This morning I had a warm, buttery, flaky croissant for breakfast. I bought a box of frozen croissants and took one of them out to proof overnight. Then I set the oven timer so that the croissant would finish baking when I needed to leave the house to go to work. It was the best way to start my week off! I highly recommend that everyone eat a fresh, warm baked good in order to get your spirits up for the long week ahead.