Well, I was officially 40 weeks prego yesterday. Today I woke up and still no baby (Eleanor's first question today was also 'Where baby sister?'). I'm feeling great though. I woke up early and got in a 20 minute mile on the treadmill. I have no issue with not having this baby until Thursday which is the day of my scheduled induction.
I was induced with Eleanor as well. It was a great experience and if all goes like last time, I will be ecstatic. I've been 2cm dilated for about 3 weeks, which is similar to my last pregnancy. I know some women who fear being induced and/or have been induced without success. I realize the possibility is there, but already being dilated I think puts me in a better place.
Here are all the pros with being induced on Thursday. I realize I don't have a lot of control over the matter, but I like knowing that going past my due date is definitely not all bad.
1. Scheduled - Eleanor will be taken care of, bags will be packed, house cleaned, laundry done, and I'll hopefully have had a good night's rest.
2. Doctor - I will have MY doctor there. Not the on call doctor who I'm sure is great, well-qualified and likable, but there's comfort in knowing that the doctor I know and trust is going to be the one delivering.
3. Maternity Leave - I'll be taking off 12 weeks for maternity leave once again. While today is going to be 62 (a huge warm-up), it's supposed to rain all day and into tomorrow. So I'm putting my money on the thought that June 23-25 will be nicer than March 31-April 2, which will be the last few days of my maternity leave if I work until Thursday :)
So the deal is we call at 5am Thursday morning to check room availability and possibly go in at 6:30am. If a bed is not available, we'll just keep checking in until they give us the okay to go in. I'll have a light breakfast, drop Eleanor at daycare, head to the hospital and get hookup on the Pitocen. Hopefully all will go smoothly and we'll have our baby that day!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
My Favorite Dinners
I cook dinner at least 5 days a week in our house. And after working 8 hours a day during the week, the last thing I want to do is spend an hour in the kitchen. I'm sure many of you can relate, even if you don't work a 40 hour week.
These are two of our favorites. Not only are they easy, which means 1. fast and 2. minimal dishes and 3. most ingredients are already in our pantry/freezer, but they taste great! I believe I have my sis-in-law Charity to thank for both these dishes!
Moroccan Meatballs served over Couscous - 6 servings
(adapted from Beverly Mills' Cheap. Fast. Good.)
Ingredients:
10 ounces plain couscous
1 pound frozen meatballs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 teaspoons bottle minced garlic)
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 fresh jalapeno pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional, I never use)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Cook couscous as directed.
Place frozen meatballs on microwave-safe plate, uncovered, on high-power for 2 minutes to partially thaw.
Meanwhile, heat oil over medium heat in 4 1/2 quart pot. Peel and coarsely chop onions, adding them to pot as you go. Cook, stirring until the onions begin to soften, about 3 minutes.
Add tomatoes and their juices, garlic and sugar.
Seed and finely chop jalapeno. Add to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally while you rinse and chop the cilantro and parsley (if using). Add them to the pot along with cumin, cinnamon and ginger. Give a stir to mix. Add meatballs and cover, cooking until meatballs are heated through, about 10 minutes.
Serve immediately over couscous.
Mexican Lasagna - 4 servings
(adapted from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals)
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds ground chicken breast or sirloin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 onion, chopped
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained
1 cup medium heat taco sauce
1 (14 oz) can diced or fire roasted tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Heat skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and ground meat to skillet. Season meat with chili powder, cumin and onion. Brown meat, about 5 minutes. Add taco sauce, tomatoes, black beans, and corn. Heat mixture through for 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt to your taste.
Coat 9x13 baking dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cut tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortilla, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly.
Please note that the indicated number of servings is per the recipe. But I think the lasagna serves more than the meatballs. And I can't say how many people, because especially in our house, each person eats a vastly different amount. Just try and see how they work for your family. I'm confident you won't be disappointed!
These are two of our favorites. Not only are they easy, which means 1. fast and 2. minimal dishes and 3. most ingredients are already in our pantry/freezer, but they taste great! I believe I have my sis-in-law Charity to thank for both these dishes!
Moroccan Meatballs served over Couscous - 6 servings
(adapted from Beverly Mills' Cheap. Fast. Good.)
Ingredients:
10 ounces plain couscous
1 pound frozen meatballs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, minced (or 2 teaspoons bottle minced garlic)
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 fresh jalapeno pepper
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (optional, I never use)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Cook couscous as directed.
Place frozen meatballs on microwave-safe plate, uncovered, on high-power for 2 minutes to partially thaw.
Meanwhile, heat oil over medium heat in 4 1/2 quart pot. Peel and coarsely chop onions, adding them to pot as you go. Cook, stirring until the onions begin to soften, about 3 minutes.
Add tomatoes and their juices, garlic and sugar.
Seed and finely chop jalapeno. Add to pot. Cook, stirring occasionally while you rinse and chop the cilantro and parsley (if using). Add them to the pot along with cumin, cinnamon and ginger. Give a stir to mix. Add meatballs and cover, cooking until meatballs are heated through, about 10 minutes.
Serve immediately over couscous.
Mexican Lasagna - 4 servings
(adapted from Rachael Ray's 30 Minute Meals)
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds ground chicken breast or sirloin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 onion, chopped
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained
1 cup medium heat taco sauce
1 (14 oz) can diced or fire roasted tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn kernels
8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Heat skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and ground meat to skillet. Season meat with chili powder, cumin and onion. Brown meat, about 5 minutes. Add taco sauce, tomatoes, black beans, and corn. Heat mixture through for 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt to your taste.
Coat 9x13 baking dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cut tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortilla, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly.
Please note that the indicated number of servings is per the recipe. But I think the lasagna serves more than the meatballs. And I can't say how many people, because especially in our house, each person eats a vastly different amount. Just try and see how they work for your family. I'm confident you won't be disappointed!
Monday, March 24, 2008
Happy 2nd Birthday Eleanor!!!
Today our baby is two years old! When she was first born, almost everyone said how fast they grow up. No doubt, they were right. Eleanor is her own person now. She's so independent already and wants to do everything by herself. If you try to help her, she pulls aways and declares "Self!"
Here are a few of our favorite accomplishments she's made at the ripe age of two:
Can answer the phone
Can count to 13
Can take off diaper, shoes, coat, hat, etc.
Can pull her Dora car to crib and climb in by herself
Can say most of her ABCs (minus L-M-N-O)
Can climb ladder and go down slide on her own (actually she could do that last summer)
Here's a timeline of pictures from the past two years. We love you Eleanor!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
I've Lost My Mind
I always joke with other moms about how pregnancy does crazy things to your mind. My sister-in-law told my after having Maddux that you give birth to brain cells that never come back. Well, not just that, but even during pregnancy brain cells must be sneaking out somehow. Here are a couple of my latest mind losing episodes:
A week or two ago, I did a little nesting. I started by doing a load of laundry and while in the laundry/mud room I saw that the floor was super dirty. So I go to get the broom and walk past the washer. Well, our washer and dryer are the fancy digital front-loading kind and Eleanor sometimes will push the buttons. I notice the lights and timer on so I hit cancel. Hello!?!? I'm the one that started the darn wash! So 5 minutes or so into the cycle, I cancel it and the water drains and I have to restart it. And to top it off, about 10 minutes later I'm in the laundry room again, this time getting out the vacuum. Eleanor comes in and hits cancel on the wash before I can stop her. Uhhh! Well, our laundry was extra clean that day.
My morning ritual at work is to come in, put away my purse and lunch, then power up my laptop. Once I have that done, I'll grab my 32oz water bottle and coffee mug. I walk down the hall and the first stop is the coffee pot. I leave my mug and continue upstairs to the water cooler. Well the other day, I get up to the water cooler and look at my hand. In it I'm carrying my coffee mug. I had left my water bottle at the coffee pot. So I had to take my retarded self, back down the stairs to retrieve the water bottle while leaving my mug for coffee.
For some reason this morning, I felt like having toast for breakfast. I got the bread out of the bread draw and the toaster out of the cupboard. While my bread was toasting I realized I had left the bread draw open. When I turned around to get the bread and put it away, Matt was standing there and I realized that he needed to make sandwiches for lunch any way. So I closed the bread draw. When my toast pops up, I butter it and slap on some of this awesome Swedish Cloudberry jam. I wrap the cord around the toaster to put it away and what do I find in the cupboard, but the loaf of bread! I have absolutely no recollection of putting the bread in there, but I have no one else to blame.
And let me tell you, these stories are only the tip of the iceberg. My mind is in absolute chaos. I don't know how I'm going to get through the weekend with Sunday being Easter and Eleanor's birthday on Monday (which means a dinner Friday night, a cake Sunday after brunch, and a dinner on her birthday) plus a baby that could arrive at any time!
A week or two ago, I did a little nesting. I started by doing a load of laundry and while in the laundry/mud room I saw that the floor was super dirty. So I go to get the broom and walk past the washer. Well, our washer and dryer are the fancy digital front-loading kind and Eleanor sometimes will push the buttons. I notice the lights and timer on so I hit cancel. Hello!?!? I'm the one that started the darn wash! So 5 minutes or so into the cycle, I cancel it and the water drains and I have to restart it. And to top it off, about 10 minutes later I'm in the laundry room again, this time getting out the vacuum. Eleanor comes in and hits cancel on the wash before I can stop her. Uhhh! Well, our laundry was extra clean that day.
My morning ritual at work is to come in, put away my purse and lunch, then power up my laptop. Once I have that done, I'll grab my 32oz water bottle and coffee mug. I walk down the hall and the first stop is the coffee pot. I leave my mug and continue upstairs to the water cooler. Well the other day, I get up to the water cooler and look at my hand. In it I'm carrying my coffee mug. I had left my water bottle at the coffee pot. So I had to take my retarded self, back down the stairs to retrieve the water bottle while leaving my mug for coffee.
For some reason this morning, I felt like having toast for breakfast. I got the bread out of the bread draw and the toaster out of the cupboard. While my bread was toasting I realized I had left the bread draw open. When I turned around to get the bread and put it away, Matt was standing there and I realized that he needed to make sandwiches for lunch any way. So I closed the bread draw. When my toast pops up, I butter it and slap on some of this awesome Swedish Cloudberry jam. I wrap the cord around the toaster to put it away and what do I find in the cupboard, but the loaf of bread! I have absolutely no recollection of putting the bread in there, but I have no one else to blame.
And let me tell you, these stories are only the tip of the iceberg. My mind is in absolute chaos. I don't know how I'm going to get through the weekend with Sunday being Easter and Eleanor's birthday on Monday (which means a dinner Friday night, a cake Sunday after brunch, and a dinner on her birthday) plus a baby that could arrive at any time!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Prego Pics
With just three weeks until our due date, tonight we did our prego family photo shoot. Some of you may remember the pictures we did when pregnant with Eleanor. They turned out nicely, especially after cropping and making black & white, so we wanted to have some for the new baby as well. Here are my favorites...
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Construction Begins
We've finally broken ground on our home! See the link to 444 Moccasin to check our progress.
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Happy Birthday Maddux!
Eleanor loves birthdays and loves singing "Happy Birthday" (and cake and ice cream for that matter). Luckily her cousin Maddux is celebrating his 3rd birthday tomorrow (Feb. 1) and she has a real reason to sing. Happy Birthday Maddux!!!
P.S. She also loves looking at pictures on our digital camera when we take them and she doesn't know the difference between that and the camcorder :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)