Baby!

Baby Finn is here!!

6/10/10

2:49 PM
Philadelphia, PA
8 lbs 8 oz

20 3/4 inches long

James Finn Miller made his big and grand debut into the world last Thursday afternoon after a short but crazy labor. I'd been having some icky contractions all last week prior to his birth that lasted anywhere between 3-4 hours per day for 4 days straight to no avail! Because they weren't falling into any regular or predictable patterns but my body was progressing, our midwife decided to put me on petocin Thursday morning to jump start things. Well, it certainly worked and within a few hours, he was here!

Both he and mommy are doing really well. I feel so much stronger and better than I did post-delivery with our first baby, and seeing that we have a wild toddler to chase around and care for too, I am very grateful!

Although a little sleepy, it's been so wonderful to have him out of belly and in our home. Though my brain continues to have daunting thoughts of how I'll ever make it outside again with a toddler and newborn, we wouldn't trade this little guy for the world. He's been a delight and joy and his big brother has started showing lots of (gulp) "gentle" (he tries to be soft and gentle, at least) affection towards Finn: the last day or two he's been obsessed with holding baby and wrapping his arms around baby's body. Cute.

Anyways, I won't bore you any longer, but we're happy.

And..speaking of fish, here is a new recipe for ya.

The night before we went into the hospital we decided to take advantage of the nice weather, so we "threw some shrimp on the barbay" and had ourselves a little outdoor picnic in the courtyard area of our apartment complex.

My palate was craving shrimp, really, really good, plump and large fresh shrimp with a light marinade.

I thumbed threw some of our "Everyday Food" magazines and nailed the one that tickled my tongue, so here's the recipe:

Orange and Thyme Grilled Shrimp

{Everyday Food, July 2008}

1 pound large shrimp (about 24), peeled and deveined, tails on

1 1/2 teaspoons grated orange zest, plus 1 cup fresh orange juice

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for grates

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

Coarse salt and ground pepper

In a shallow dish, combine shrimp, orange zest, orange juice, garlic, oil, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and teaspoon pepper; toss to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (or up to 8 hours). Soak eight 8-inch wooden skewers in water 30 minutes before cooking.

Heat grill to medium; lightly oil grates. Thread shrimp onto skewers, and grill, turning once, until shrimp are opaque throughout, 3 to 4 minutes, brushing and basting shrimp with leftover marinade as they cook.

Serve warm. Yum Yum Yum.

We served the skewers with the following side dishes:

Cooked red potato cubes with a pesto/Greek yogurt mixture

Strawberries and avocados with a sweet Balsamic reduction

Peppers and cherry tomatoes