Recipe Wednesday- Pumpkin Treats

Since I have not been posting very many recipes lately, here are two of my favorite pumpkin treats to make... just in time for Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

25 NABISCO Ginger Snaps, finely crushed (about 1-1/2 cups)

1/2 cup finely chopped PLANTERS Pecans

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

4 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla

4 eggs

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

Dash ground cloves

Make It

PREHEAT oven to 325°F if using a silver 9-inch springform pan (or to 300°F if using a dark nonstick 9-inch springform pan). Mix ginger snap crumbs, pecans and butter; press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of pan.

BEAT cream cheese, 3/4 cup of the sugar and the vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Remove 1-1/2 cups of the batter; place in small bowl. Stir remaining 1/4 cup sugar, the pumpkin and spices into remaining batter. Spoon half of the pumpkin batter into crust; top with spoonfuls of half of the reserved plain batter. Repeat layers. Cut through batters with knife several times for marble effect.

BAKE 55 min. to 1 hour 5 min. or until center is almost set. (Test doneness by gently shaking the pan. If the cheesecake is done, it will be set except for an approximately 2-1/2-inch area in the center that will be soft and jiggly.) Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake; cool before removing rim. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Simple Fall Dessert Squares

1 box yellow cake mix
8 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 Eggs
13.5 oz pumpkin butter (could also use Apple butter or Cranberry relish)
2 Tbsp milk
1 Tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9x13 baking pan.

Reserve 1 cup of cake mix in a small bowl.

In another bowl, stir together remaining cake mix, 8 Tbsp melted butter, and 1 egg. Pour into prepared pan.

In another bowl, stir together pumpkin butter with the remaining 2 eggs and the milk. Spread over the cake batter in the baking pan.

Add the flour, sugar, and cinnamon to the small bowl with the reserved cake mix and stir together. Using a pastry blender or fork, cut the butter until pea sized crumbs form and the mixture clumps together. Crumble over the mixture in the baking dish.

Bake until golden, about 40 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack to cool. Cut into squares and serve.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Chloe's Identity Crisis

We have been calling Chloe the little momma because she has been acting like Rex is her baby. When he cries she goes running to see what is wrong, every now and then she feels the need to check on him to make sure he is alright, and she loves to give him kisses (we have limited them to his feet, but if she had it her way she would kiss his face and hands).

However, this evening we discovered that she may still want to be the baby of the family. This is where we found her while we were fixing dinner.

Rex Update

Ben and I realized last night that we have not been taking pictures of our little Rex... He has changed a lot in the last three weeks and we haven't even thought to document it.

We had to take him to the doctor on Monday because he had a clogged tear duct. I could tell that he really didn't feel well, but after a week of antibiotics he is back to good health. Please continue to pray for him to stay healthy this winter as RSV and Rotavirus are a huge risk for him.

We have been working with the Lactation Consultant, Kristi, and Gateway. She has been wonderful in helping Rex and I learn how to nurse. I told her that I thought that he was getting about 3oz to eat because that is what he took from a bottle. She told me that she didn't think so since newborns his age only take about an ounce to and ounce and a half and bottle fed babies tend to overeat because they get milk faster from a bottle. However, on Friday she weighed him before he ate and he was just over 6lbs 1oz... after he ate she weighed him again and he was 6lbs 4oz. What can I say he, eats like a little piggy! He is beginning to outgrow some of his preemie clothes so I am getting the newborn size ready. I still look at some of his clothes that are 3 months and up and think there is no way that he will ever fit in them because they look so big, but I'm sure he will be in them before we know it.

Today is my due date and he will be 4 weeks old tomorrow... we feel blessed to have had him for an extra month! After thanksgiving we are going to take him to get his 1 month pictures made (it is super convenient that my dad is a budding photographer). Till then here are some pictures we took last night.

Our Little Boy is Growing

We went to meet with the lactation consultant this morning to see how Rex was doing with eating... He's a little piggy. She weighed him before I feed him and he was 5 lbs 1.5oz ( He was just 4 lbs 11oz on Monday)! That is about an ounce a day. He is for sure getting enough to eat and she said if continues to eat like he is he is going to be a chubby little thing. So much for the thought he might get more wear out of his clothes since he is so little.

More from Baby Rex

Here are some more pictures of our little Rex. We have made a new parental discovery... what I eat affects him. I had Mexican food Tuesday night for dinner and our little guy was fussy with an upset stomach and gas all day yesterday. I'm sure somewhere along the line someone told us this, I guess we just had to discover it on our own.

Butterfly Rex

These little swaddle blankets are lifesavers for us. He loves to be swaddled and won't sleep at night unless he is. We think they make him look like a little catapiller in a cacoon... some day he may hatch into a beautiful butterfly!

Rex's 1st Bath

Sometimes everything is so serious with himOther times he just likes to be sillyClean, warm, and cuddly

Rex's RoomHis room has finally come together. We are just waiting in a picture to come in to hang above his changing table.

Yea! Rex is Here!

Well, if you guessed that I would have Rex before Rachael has little girl Vaden, you were right. I went to the hospital Saturday night because I thought that my water broke, they sent me home on antibiotics. I felt aweful all day Sunday, but figured I was just coming down with something. We went back to the hospital about 1:30am because I was bleeding and my water broke as soon as I got there. 17 hours later Rex entered the world. He was born October 27 at 7:08pm weighing 4lbs 13oz and was 18 inches long. Here are some pictures of his first few days.

Rex's first close-up just minutes after his birthWarming up under the bright lightsLook at all that hairOne proud DaddyBright EyesTennessee EskimoFirst PascifierGetting ready to go home...

We've been home a couple of days now are are feeling great and adjusting to life as parents. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. More pics and updates to come soon!