What's for dinner? Night four.

I've been making this dish for the last few years. Its simple, tasty and with minimal mess. What better for those crazy busy days?! And if your like me, the last thing you want to do after a full day is wash a mountain of dishes.

Here's the recipe from Real Simple magazine. The only changes I made to the recipe was adding 2 tsp more lemon juice and a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Enjoy!

http://www.realsimple.com/m/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/cheese-tortellin-brown-butter-00100000085424/

What's for dinner? Night three.

We have finally settled in a bit in our new home. There are a few lingering boxes... And a busy to do list, but its starting to feel like home. 

The weather took a turn for the cold, and overnight it feels like winter arrived. What better time then to try out a new soup recipe. 

This one came from Pinterest as was a hit! It was by far the most flavorful Minestrone recipe i've made. Add some fresh baked bread and you have a delicious dinner. The only modification I made was leaving out the pancetta!

Here's a link to the recipe. Enjoy:)

http://homeiswheretheboatis.net/2013/01/28/winter-minestrone/

Settling in.

That's right. We made the final stretch of the move and are settling in to the new place. I was quite anxious over the flights, but the girls did fabulous! P baby nursed and slept and big sis was content to read stories and watch Winnie the Pooh. I thankfully had my mom with me... And the extra hands were so helpful.

We got answered prayers that all our belonging arrived as planned and the movers had everything unloaded from the moving containers by the time I arrived. My sweet husband rocked it by getting the beds put together and stocking up the kitchen. 

The last few days have been full and productive. Were down to the last few boxes and starting to explore the neighborhood. Last night we took a break from organizing to take Millie trick-or-treating. To our surprise, she loved seeing all the costumes! We also learned that our neighborhood is quite the place to be on Halloween. It brought back so many childhood memories. Hundreds on people out on the streets, fully decorated houses and tons of candy to go around.

It still hasn't fully sunk in that we live in DC. The weather has been great, making it so far an easy transition from sunny Southern California. I'm of course missing my close friends and praying over meeting new ones here and getting connected with a community of faith. 

Here's a few snapshots from the last few days!

What's for dinner? Night two.

Since I'm longing for the weather to feel like fall, and its not cooperating... I decided to at least make a fall dish.

In all honesty, I had to step outside my comfort zone a bit with this recipe. For some reason, I just couldn't decided how  ground turkey and a can of pumpkin would taste in chili.

After all the rave reviews I decided it was worth the try. I could always order delivery if it was a fail:)

To my surprise, it was actually quite tasty!  I also turned this recipe into a crockpot dish, taking advantage of nap time.

I sautéed my veggies and ground turkey. Dumped the remaining items in the crock pot, and turned it to low. A few hours later- dished it up and toped it with cilantro, chips, lime, cheddar cheese and avocado.

A tasty and easy weeknight meal! You'll find the recipe link below. Enjoy:)

http://inherchucks.com/2012/11/09/turkey-pumpkin-chili/

What's for dinner?!

If your like me, a busy mom of two little kiddos, dinner can seem like a rather daunting task. I decided I'd start a little series called "what's for dinner?". 

 

The recipes are found online, and sometimes tweaked a bit to make them simpler. Hope these can give you some ideas for when your in a bind of what to make for dinner:)

Tonight I tried out a new tortilla soup... Recipe courtesy of Rachael Ray. It was quite delicious. To speed up the prep time,  I used precooked rotisserie chicken, frozen corn and skipped char grilling the veggies. I tossed everything into the pot, let it simmer and toped it with cheese, cilantro,lime and homemade tortilla strips. I will definitely be making this quick and easy soup again. Yum!

http://m.foodnetwork.com/recipes/25920

Boxes and bubble wrap.

 Boxes and bubble wrap have taken over our house. We're packing little slowly and using the opportunity to purge. We're determined not to lug a bunch of stuff we don't want across the country.

The realization is really setting in that we are moving. A flood of emotions are constantly on my mind. Excitement for our new place ( which looks really awesome in pictures), experiencing a new city and meeting new people. But alongside that excitement is sadness.

We have an incredible community of friends here in LA. We love our sweet neighbors and their little kids, our amazing Church and the ability to drive to see our families. We really have been blessed to have all our immediate and almost all our extended family live in Southern California. Our kids just adore spending time with their grandparents and our closest friends.

I'm keeping my head up and a joyful heart. Im so thankful for such a supportive husband and family. Im excited for my husbands new adventure and proud of him for how hard he has worked and how far he has progressed.

I keep reminding myself to be thankfully for the things like FaceTime and 5 hour flights. We have such useful tools to keep in touch with friends and family.

Our stuff ships out Monday, but were here for two more weeks. We're looking forward to enjoying each moment with family and friends:)

Our new adventure!

It's hard to believe that our newest little one is 7 weeks already. We have been loving that she is more awake and alert now and even giving us lots of smiles! She's still giving me some pretty good sleep at night, which is doing this momma well!

On a crazy and exciting note, we got word last week that my husband was the final candidate for a really great new job... so were headed for the east coast! We are excited, anxious and sad. Neither my husband or I have ever lived outside Southern California or away from family. Moving cross country with an almost 3 year old and 2 month old seems a bit wild. We are however excited to experience seasons, meet new people, and start this adventure! 

Refreshed.

I can't begin to explain how wonderful it feels to be out and about. To not stress about going into labor during our daily walk, and to not carry around that extra weight:) Despite being tired, I feel refreshed. I'm ready to jump into some exercise  routine, be crafty and take an adventurous trip or two.

Lately we have been enjoying the beautiful summer nights. I soak in the ability to walk to so many of our favorite places from home and watch my three favorite people stroll together!

Learned life lessons

I won't hide that I was really anxious over being a mom of two. Sometimes being a mom of a busy toddler made we wonder how I could ever keep up with her while tending to a newborn.

Before P was born, I thought thru those first few months as a mom of one. How I cherished those sweet moments, but also realized looking back, how different I should have done things. I was, and still am determined to learn from my past and make changes as we start this new journey. I have vowed to get more rest, eat healthy snacks, take time for myself and knowing that the girls are in good hands, have date nights with my husband and make sure that we communicate clearly and often.

These were all areas that I felt I had challenges in when I first became a mom.  Areas that made me exhausted, emotional and disconnected at times from my husband. 

These last three weeks have put me to the test. Of course I have had moments of being exhausted and overwhelmed, but I'm thankful for setting priority's and making them happen (at least most days:)

As a mom of two, and having completed my first week with the two girl, I feel like I'm making good progress in my priority list. My sweet husband has been amazing in offering me some time out of the house, helping with chores and being a great support.

I want to encourage all you new and seasoned moms to make a priority list. Write out the things that are important to you and review it often. It's so easy to get caught up in the pure bliss of your sweet new baby and end up not taking care of yourself. A strong, healthy and some-what rested momma is essential for your family.

Playing catch up!

Our newest little one is already three weeks old! It's been quiet a busy and enjoyable last three weeks. 

A is transitioning so well to being a big sister. She loves her little sister, but might be a little disappointed that she can't quiet play with her yet.

My brother-in-law tied the knot and we had a mini family reunion! It was great to get out of town for the week, to see so much family and share in such a beautiful wedding day. 

Sweet Baby P:)

That's right. Our sweet little girl arrived. Who would have guess she would have stayed put in my belly almost until her due date! She arrived quickly into this world just two days before her estimated due date.

Here's a little story about her birth: The week leading up to her birth, I had lots of false labor and thought multiple times that she would be here any moment. Thankfully God had planned the perfect moment for her to arrive. Early Monday morning, I woke to a contraction. Something that was a common night time occurrence. I used the restroom and climbed back in bed, only to have another contraction. This one was more intense then the normal ones, so I woke my husband. A few minutes later, another painful one. I just had that intuition that this was the real deal. I quickly called our sitter to come over and  we got ready to head out. Thankfully it was 4 am, and LA traffic hadn't started yet. By the time we got on the freeway that pain was intense, the contractions coming every 2 minutes or so, and I was feeling the urge to push! A terrifying feeling when your in the car and not a hospital bed. My husband drove the fastest ( yet still being safe) that I have ever seen him drive. We arrived at the ER ( the entrance after hours) and were pretty sure the baby would be born there. After a quick check, they felt like they had enough time to rush me up to Labor and Delivery. Rush they did... And I made it into a delivery room with two pushes to spare. Just 40 minutes after that first contraction, our sweet little P was born! We had expected it to go fast, but never guessed it would be quite that fast. 

Looking back, I was just so thankful she decided to come at night, as we would have never made it to the hospital and any other time of the day! We brought her home that next day and have been enjoying every second as parents to two sweet girls.

88 days later.

And bed rest is complete!! Crazy?! Part of me never thought this day would

come.  Each day I laid on the couch I would wonder about the day I'd be free. Free to walk, grocery shop, and just go about my day not worrying about doing something that might jeopardize the baby and make labor come too soon.

These last 5 days have been pretty awesome... Hence the fact that im just now blogging about it:) Most of all I have enjoyed spending time with my sweet husband and little girl. Getting to be out and about with them, cook dinners and even participate in parent and me swim.

Im tying to also cherish this time. I know it could be short, as our newest little baby could come at anytime now. It does seem from these last few days that she's quite content staying put.

I would be lying if I didn't say that being off bed rest isn't exhausting as well. My body is readjusting to being back on my feet, with extra belly weight:) chasing a toddler around and even just standing. Thankfully my husband gives some pretty awesome massages to my sore muscles without me even having to ask.

My husband and I are excited for this next journey ahead. To finally meet our newest little girl and maybe even plan a few adventures/vacations. As much as we love Los Angeles, we haven't been able to get out of town since early April. And if you know us...we love little getaways to explore new places.

We're of course eager and anxious to see when this baby will decided to come.  My OB thought she would come as soon as bed rest was done... Which doesn't appear to be happening! I'm trying to put my anxiousness aside and just be content that she will come when she's ready:)

2 weeks and 1 days!

Not like I'm counting or anything! Haha. Ok, maybe just a little. I feel like I'm finally getting towards the end. A day that seemed so far off in the future is thankfully approaching quickly. I've been taking some time to catch up on little things. Like organizing recipes and  putting  together a list of baby items we still need!

With the little more a freedom I've been giving by my OB, I've been using it to enjoy some baking. My mom has been an awesome sou chef and I've enjoyed baking with our sweet Millie.

I thought I'd share a few of the new recipes we have tried out recently! I'm also hoping that in 3 weeks I have enough energy to get in some serious baking before this baby comes! Hopefully I can make up some yummy cookies that will freeze well:)

Flourless Apple Cinnamon muffins- Delighted Momma

http://www.delightedmomma.com/2013/01/flourless-apple-cinnamon-muffins.html?m=1

Angel food cake ( I made mine into cupcakes:) - Betty Crocker 

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/angel-food-cake/66bcb128-5ee6-4f1c-b428-6c1bb4cc45ca

Hello month 8!

I came to the realization that today marks the start of month 8! Exciting and crazy at the same time. The realization that our sweet baby girl will be here next month is becoming a reality. We set up a crib, pulled out the bins of baby clothes, and started a list of a few needed items. Today also marks the home stretch of bed rest. 4 weeks and counting! I've put together quite the list of things I have planned once bed rest ends. Now I just have to hope that I have the energy and don't feel too huge to actually do those things.

On a great note, my OB said I was able to sit up more. Might not sound like much, but that also means I can get out a bit! My sweet husband can drop me off at the door of a restaurant for some much needed time out of the house. We have also been going on car rides over the weekend. Parking on the bluffs, rolling down the windows and enjoying a little bit of the beach. 

Working through gestational diabetes has also been a trying and interesting time. I approached it like science. Read labels, added numbers and tried to calculate it all out, but it quickly became overwhelming. I realized that each persons body processes food so differently. What might work for one person, didn't  work for me. Thankfully my awesome doctor encouraged me to just eat healthy, watch my glucose numbers and not worry about the rest. Woah. Such a relief! One benefit of these last few weeks is that my desire for sweets has finally been kicked. I grew up in a home were sweet treats were a daily occurrence, and this continued on into our marriage. Those first two weeks were hard. Everywhere I turned, I was tempted with pictures and recipes of tasty looking baked goods. I kept kicking myself each time I looked on Pinterest! I have allowed myself an occasional small square of dark chocolate or a few bites of my husbands ice cream, but for the first time, I don't crave it! It really does feel freeing. I've already planned for a milkshake after this baby arrives, but really hope to keep keep eating healthy, with sweet treats few and far between!

Goal # 1

Just rounded out 30 weeks and met our first goal! We celebrated with a little treat. Ok... Well kinda! With the bed rest came unexpected gestational diabetes. My OB thinks that my lack of any activity these days has made havoc with my metabolism. I will say its been a bit of an adjustment. I've also quickly learned that my love for sweets, especially Ben & Jerry's was a bit worse then I first realized.  In hindsight, were only making changes to our diet for the best. I've actually been using some free time to look into healthy "desserts", learning about baking with almond meal and ways to satisfy my sweet tooth. Thankfully summer is quickly approaching and tasty fruit is everywhere.

Flash forward- 2013

Crazy to think so much time has gone by since my last post. Lot's of travel, a toddler, the holidays and a new baby on the way might have just been enough to keep me busy! But looking back over these last 6 weeks, it's wild to experience the unexpected in life.

I was encouraged recently by my sweet husband to think about blogging again. The more I thought about it...the more I was hoping this could be an encouragement for other mommas on a similar journey.

To play catch up, i'll jump back to April. I was 24 weeks pregnant, thankful to be feeling full of energy again and busy with our sweet 2 1/2 year old. I went to a routine follow-up ultrasound only for my OB to find by accident that my cervical length had shortened from the previous scan at 20 weeks. She assured me that it wasn't all that concerning, but I should take it easy and come back a few days later to make sure all was still measuring the same.

I followed her orders and went to see her a few days later. To all of our surprises, my cervical length was even shorter. It had gone from 1.3 cm to 0.3 cm ( the norm is about 3 cm) in just 3 days. My heart completely sunk. I had a very easy pregnancy with our daughter. I had lot's of braxton hick contractions and had to be on modified bed rest, but everything went smoothly!

My OB suggested I check in to the hospital for monitoring and steroid injections. Thankfully my mom was in town watching A and my husband could spend the night with me. It was pretty overwhelming. My emotions were all over the place, I was scared of all the what if's, and my only overnight hospital experiences was when our daughter was born.

That first night I was pretty restless, which I guess is to be expected in the hospital. As that next morning approached, I started to have contractions. More consistent and uncomfortable then the normal braxton hicks I was use to. The next few hours were kinda a blur. I was sent over to labor & delivery for more close monitoring. I was given a high dose of Magnesium Sulfate (which makes you feel just awful), had a long and emotional talk with my OB, and just kept praying the contractions would stop. The reality that our baby might be born that afternoon, at only 24 weeks and 3 days was terrifying.

Thankfully, the medication worked like a charm. The contractions stopped, my body seem to stabilize out and I was surrounded by family and friends. I spent 48 hours in L &D, then was transfered back to postpartum. My OB was able to switch me to oral medications to prevent contractions, and as long as everything stayed status quo, I was home free...on strict bed rest.

A week after heading to the hospital, I was sent home. It was such a great feeling to be home with our daughter and sleeping in my own bed. It was equally an overwhelming experience to realize just how much I couldn't do, and how I could manage such strict rest for the next 11 weeks.

I'll jump ahead to the current, as I could probably write forever on all the challenges and emotions that have run through my head. I'm 2 day's shy of 30 weeks pregnant- my first goal almost reached! The last  6 weeks have been full of adjustment. My fabulous OB has worked so well to help me stay out of the hospital, my mom and mother-in-law have provided full time care for our daughter during the week, and I have been learning to accept help in new ways.

I can't say this has been an easy journey...but I can say that it's getting easier. Finding a daily routine and checking out new things to explore online have been a great help. I've been trying to mentally process that for this time I am suppose to spend most my time on the couch, and accept that it is only for a time. I've been reading other people's story's and staying encouraged by friends who also experienced prolonged bed rest.

I'm not sure anyone in a similar situation will stumble across my blog, but I'm hoping to keep writing along this crazy journey. I'm sure I'll look back at this post, and realize what a small glimpse of time this really is.