BEER mom and I had a very busy week since we now have an entire BEER family, but that didn’t stop us from making wheat beer on Saturday.

My whole family actually helped out with this batch because they were in town this weekend visiting Kaden.

Laura and I ran to our local homebrew store before they arrived and picked up the last can of wheat beer extract. The owner said she didn’t expect such a large demand because everyone had been buying stout all winter, but her customers usually switch to wheat beer the first nice week of spring. This is good stuff to know for some of our future ventures (beercompany.org).

Before I get into the brewing details, here are a few more pictures of our 6 day old son, Kaden.

Me holding Kaden

Kaden and his grandma (my mom)

Kaden and his grandpa (my dad)

Kaden and his aunt Stacie (my sister)

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Early this morning Kaden decided that after 35 weeks of waiting, he was ready to come out.

BEER mom (aka Laura) and I went to the hospital around 6pm last night because her contractions were becoming stronger. The doctors planned to do what they could do to stop the labor, but gave in around 9pm. She was fully dilated around midnight and delivered an early, healthy baby after 20 minutes of actual labor at 1:18am, Monday, March 24th, 2008.

Kaden arrived 5 weeks before his expected due date, but is still a good size for a pre-term baby. He was 4 lbs 15.2 oz and 16 3/4 inches long on arrival.

He gets to spend a few days in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, but is doing just fine and should be coming home sometime over the next few days.

Kaden a few minutes old.

Kaden in the NICU

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BEER mom had her second baby shower this weekend (she had two because our friends and family are split between Kansas City and Wichita) and it’s a good thing too because she was having contractions all through the weekend. I won’t bore you with the details, instead here are some of the things our little guy, Kaden, received.

He got a nice cake that BEER mom enjoyed.

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BEER mom and I decided to paint the baby’s room before he gets here and before the shower we are having this weekend.

It used to be a whole assortment of colors left over from the previous owners. One wall was half white and half pink, another was light blue, and the other two were a pale yellow.

We choose to tone it down a bit with light beige and a dark brown accent. We also added the decorations we received last weekend.

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I failed to mention in my last two posts that in addition to brewing beer, I started roasting my own coffee as well. I began this weekend using an old popcorn popper and 5 pounds of green (unroasted) coffee.

Similar to what I discovered with making beer, if you enjoy coffee – roasting your own just makes sense. It tastes better than anything you could ever buy, is inexpensive, and saves a ton of money in the long run.

I love coffee just as much as I do beer, so prior to roasting my own I bought whole bean coffee to grind myself. I found this was still cheaper than buying ground coffee and it allowed me to brew what ever style of coffee I desired (espresso, drip, press, etc).

Buying it whole bean cost $10 – 12 per pound and typically last me about a month. By roasting my own I am able to buy different varieties of beans from around the world and have them shipped for still less than $5 / pound.

If stored properly, green coffee can last a long time, so not only can I store it and create my own blends of coffee, I am able to choose how dark or light it is too. With whole bean or preground coffee I had to drink the same thing for at least a month before getting anything else.

Brewing beer is still number one in my book, so I don’t plan on becoming COFFEE dad anytime soon (although the website is available). I just figured my coffee endeavors were worth mentioning since you will probably hear about them again when I make my next batch of coffee beer.

I am sitting here drinking one of my Nut Brown Ale’s from December (which still tastes awesome by the way) and I have come to the conclusion that our baby is going to be spoiled when he arrives.

We are having two baby showers just like how BEER mom had two bridal showers, because our families live on different ends of the state. Last night we were in Overland Park, KS for the baby shower with my side of the family, and now I can’t think of anything else the little guy would ever need. In my opinion the best way to spoil a baby is to let everyone get in on the action.

He is the first grandchild on BEER mom’s side of the family, and among the first on mine. My parents and relatives absolutely love babies so they spoiled us and him with a shower of presents. Here are a few of the things he now has:

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I now have 3 bottles of the first batch of beer ever brewed under the BEER dad name back in my possession. I will probably drink one tonight and plan to put at least one more into a six pack with my espresso stout and an amber ale. There is one more espresso stout roaming around in Wichita, and if I can convince the owner to return it I will make 2 six packs of each of my first 6 brews.

BEER mom and I were in Kansas City last night for one of our baby showers and I handed out some of my amber ale. I didn’t hear any complaints and also received compliments from the people who had some of my nut brown ale. I am trying to convince everyone that drinks to save brown bottles for me so I can clean and reuse them, that way I can continue to give away my beer without the added expense of buying each time.

When you brew your own beer the packaging is always the most expensive part. I took 12 of my amber ale last night and came home with 10 empty bottles (not sure what happened to the others). Then by brother gave me back 2 bottles he had from the nut brown ale and my dad gave me the 3 bottles that still contain some of my first brew.

Thank you to everyone saved the beer in the event that forgot to save some, and everyone planning on hoarding bottles for me.

My amber ale turned out pretty good and I’m looking forward to the 58 bottles I have left. A few people have already said I should make wheat beer for my next batch, and there is a good chance of that happening.

I will also begin roasting my own coffee this weekend so I am hoping to brew more coffee beer sometime soon too.

How making beer is similar to parenting

• The first one is always the hardest

Homebrew: You will never so scared about making beer as you were with your first. When I made my first brew I was terrified I would do something wrong and my first beer would be a failure. I was afraid if this happened, either I wouldn’t want to make more or my wife wouldn’t let me since I would have wasted so much. Once you make your first each one after seems easier. As long as you are prepared and do everything right you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

Parenting: My fear right now is that I might do something wrong or will forget something and that our first baby won’t turn out right. If we have another kid, most likely I won’t be as worried. Again though – similar to making beer – as long as we both are there, are supportive, take our time, and do everything right, then our little guy should turn out just fine.

How making beer is similar to parenting

• You always want the best for your baby

Homebrew: When you’re making beer you always want the best for it so it turns out right. You also might want it to be the best beer you’ve ever had. Because of this you will probably go out of your way to make sure everything goes well. One time I almost took a blanket away from BEER mom just to make sure the beer was warm enough while it was fermenting. She got mad though and wouldn’t let me.

Parenting: Kids are a lot like beer because they are like your baby too, which means you will probably want the best for them as well. You will strive to take care of them and to do everything right so they will turn out good. You want your baby to be as happy and healthy as possible so he can live a long and prosperous life.

• Other people’s babies are never as good as your own

Homebrew: Once you make your first beer you will probably become biased and will think it is better than everyone else’s beer. This is ok because it probably is. No other beer could possibly top the way yours looks nor could it taste so good. You will probably stop drinking other beer all together, which is fine because it will save you money.

Parenting: At one time or another you probably knew someone who thought their little brat was the smartest and cutest thing ever. They are wrong because your kid is the smartest, cutest, and most popular. Yours will probably grow up to be rich and successful, while the other person’s kid is nothing but trouble. In reality though, all parents eventually think their kid is the best, but this is ok because every kid deserves that kind of admiration.

Stop by tomorrow for my final reason on why making beer is a lot like parenting.