Making My Day - Month Six

Cheese!

24 weeks

I just have to post this picture of little Baby Koester because I find myself talking to him/her everytime I look at it. This picture is just too cute!! It was actually from the video from our 20-week ultrasound and I took a picture snip-it. He/she is smiling!!!!!!!!!!!! My heart totally melts every single time.

I mean, when you're having a bad day, just look at this little cutie pie! I picture him/her laughing inside me. Maybe cuz he heard his/her dad laughing and just had to join in.

Baby K giggling in my belly! I can't wait to meet him/her!!!!!!!

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North Woods Bean Soup

North Woods Bean Soup
serves 4
recipe found on My Recipe.com site.

Cooking spray

1 cup baby carrots, halved

1 cup chopped onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

7 ounces turkey kielbasa, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2 (15.8-ounce) cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 (6-ounce) bag fresh baby spinach leaves

1.  Heat a large saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add carrots, onion, garlic, and kielbasa; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium; cook 5 minutes. Add the broth, Italian seasoning, pepper, and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes.

2. Place 2 cups of the soup in a food processor or blender, and process until smooth. Return the pureed mixture to pan. Simmer an additional 5 minutes. Remove soup from heat. Add the spinach, stirring until spinach wilts.

Karl's reaction: "Oh, man. We're having soup tonight?" **grumble grumble** "Wait, this is pretty good. Actually this is really good. I think I need more."

My take: REALLY good soup. Loved this. Super quick and easy.

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Quick Healthy Breakfast Casserole

Tasty breakfast casserole goes a long way
serves 8-12
recipe from a church friend

1 dozen eggs

1 cup milk
1 1/2 cup water
1 tsp dry mustard
1 bag of Simply Potatoes Hash Browns
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Bacon or other goodies

1. Mix all ingredients together and pour into casserole or cake pan and bake at 350 F for one hour.

2. Add bacon bits (I used real bacon) after it is in pan. I also added mushrooms, green, red and yellow bell peppers.

Karl's reaction: "Probably could use just a little more salt but this is really good."

My take: I love this recipe. It's easy to make and tastes great. It also feeds a lot of people.

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Chicken, Wild Rice and Cherry Tomato Casserole

Chicken, Wild Rice and Cherry Tomato Casserole
serves 6
recipe found in an advertisement in on of my health magazines for Nature Sweet Cherry Tomatoes

1 medium yellow onion, sliced thin

2 cloves garlic, sliced thin
4 oz mushrooms, bottoms trimmed, sliced thin
2 (5 oz) packages long grain and wild rice seasoned rice mix (I used the 5 minute rice)
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
4 chicken breasts, sliced into 1/2" slices
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 cups of hot water
1 package of NatureSweet cherry tomatoes, halved

Preheat oven to 400 F. In a large casserole dish, combine the first nine ingredients, top with tomatoes, cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Karl's reaction: 'This is different than anything you've ever made before. I like it a lot. Good job babe."
My take: I was surprised cuz I normally don't make rice but this was good! Will make again!

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Being Surrounded by the Flu Bug - Month Six

week 23

Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.  (www.babycenter.com) 

Merry Christmas all! Here's our Holiday Card I made in about 30 minutes this year. It's not my greatest work, as I was running out of time but at least I sent them out and most people should get them on time...I hope...

Last week was such a good week and then poof - everything changed. Isn't life funny that way? My parents came up on Monday night, which I was so excited about. They watched me play volleyball for the first time in a very very very long time, but it was also my last time playing until the baby is born (my dad said I was incredibly slow...jeesh, thanks).

Tuesday my brother Mike and I were in our church's Service of Remembrance worship, so my parents came to that and we sang Christmas carols after, which always puts me in the Christmas spirit. Karl had one more final to take so he missed out. Then Wednesday my dad planned to paint Baby K's nursery while Karl and I were working all day. By the looks of all the ideas I printed up from my new favorite site Pinterest and what my dad sketched up on the walls, this nursery is going to turn out way COOL. I can't wait for all of you to see...that is...if it gets done. On Wednesday morning my dad was racing downstairs when I woke up. He said he didn't feel right and spent the next 12 hours in the bathroom. Yeah.... Not good.

We thought maybe with all the antibiotics he's been on, his immune system was lowered and he picked up a bug. Of course my mom was freaking out about his heart since a few weeks ago his was in stage B congestive heart failure (all because of a tooth infection that found its way into his heart). **Floss your teeth people** So we assumed since what started off as poison ivy all over his face, then H-Pylori, which then turned into a tooth infection, then an awful cold and now the flu, he just needed to build up his immune system and was more susceptible to germs.

I left work early yesterday so I could spend time with my mom since my dad was so sick and she doesn't know how her GPS works or where any of the stores are around here. We spent a lot of time together. Then last night we all had dinner and started watching TV. My mom all of a sudden jumped out of her seat and booked into the bathroom and stayed there for the next 12 hours. She got the same crazy flu my dad had!!!

Not to mention Karl has a major fear of getting sick. And I mean major major major fear. All I was looking for was the, "It's going to be fine, babe. Remember, you work out. You take four vitamins every day. You eat super healthy. You're going to be okay, honey." Oh, no. He wound me up so tight last night saying that I was going to be admitted to the hospital if I got the same flu bug my parents had and I'd have IVs sticking out of me because I'm pregnant and I need fluids. And pregnant women get sick easier. So I couldn't sleep. I stayed up all night wondering when the bug would strike me, worried that I'll be hurting our baby if I get it. Then he said it would be inevitable we both would be next and we basically needed to accept it.

This is the big difference about us. We both came from very different environments. Me, much more positive. Him, a lot more negative and anxiety filled. I think we balance each other out well though, but last night all his anxiety and negativity put me over the top. I couldn't take it.

So I need to blog about this and tell myself that Karl, baby and I will be fine. I do take care of myself. Yes, I might bite my fingernails (I haven't for two days), but I wash my hands all the time. I see people leave volleyball without washing their hands and get sick all the time. I try to get fresh air whenever I can. I eat really really good. I wash my cell phone off with disinfectant wipes. And I do workout. I didn't even think the flu shot counted. I never get that stupid shot, but this year I did...and it's for upper respiratory stuff. Now I wish it did protect against the throwing-up part. I guess I'm just worried about the lack of sleep now... And all the stress. I swear my blood pressure was through the roof last night.

Hoping and praying the bug leaves the house and every one is in tip-top shape come Christmas.

Too all of you...have a very Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!           

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Seared Scallops with White Beans and Bacon

Seared Scallops with White Beans and Bacon
serves 4
recipe found in Women's Health, December 2011

Tasty seafood dish full of protein

2 strips bacon, chopped into small pieces

1/2 red onion, minced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 cans white beans (14 oz each), rinsed and drained

4 cups baby spinach

1 lb large sea scallops

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp butter

juice of 1 lemon

1. Heat a medium saucepan on low, and cook the bacon until it begins to crisp. Pour off some of the bacon fat and add the onion and garlic. Saute them until the onion is soft and translucent, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the white beans and spinach; cook until the beans are hot and the spinach is wilted. Keep warm.

2. Heat a large cast-iron skillet or saute pan on medium high. Blot the scallops dry with a paper towel and season them on both sides with salt and pepper. Add the butter to the pan. After it melts, add the scallops. Sear them 2 to 3 minutes on each side until they're deeply caramelized.

3. Before serving, add the lemon juice to the beans, along with some salt and pepper. Divide the beans among four warm bowls or plates and top with scallops.

Karl's reaction: "It smells fishy in here. This is actually really good though, babe. The bacon makes this dish."

My take: I didn't want to spend $26 on 6 scallops so I instead bought a big bag of small frozen ones. They took a lot longer to cook than 2-3 minutes on each side. Maybe I did something wrong but this dish turned out really good. I would make again. Lots of flavor!

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Baby Showers, Day Care and More - Month 6

22 weeks!

At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily. (www.babycenter.com)                 

Me at 22 weeks!

It’s been a great week. I’ve been feeling really good! I played my second to last volleyball game on Monday at 9:15 and wasn’t too tired the next day, and playing even cured my headache. Yay! I try to avoid taking any Tylenol at all anymore. I’ve been trying to get into the gym more than once a week but it is hard and I wonder how this is going to be once baby is born, unless I get up at 4 or 5  in the morning to workout… There’s always something going on, or because it’s so dark out when I get off work, I want to get home and hang out with Karl. But after my hefty weight gain last month, I know I need to make working out more of a priority.

My bump is clearly visible and I’m feeling our baby kick tons more, which really is such a cool feeling. I have noticed I’m going to the bathroom a lot more. My lower region just feels heavier, if that makes sense? I feel like the baby either sits on my left side, which feels like my skin is being painfully stretched or I feel like he/she sits on my bladder, adding lots of pressure down there.

My first shower invites have been sent out (and they are CUTE!). Super excited to hear that some of my greatest friends and awesome family will be coming (and I even missed some of these friends/family's showers!). I have the greatest support system, I swear. Anyway, I can’t wait. I have a total of three showers planned. All three are currently happening before baby is born. I’m totally okay with that. But a few people have voiced their opinion that I need to have a shower after the baby is born so I get better stuff since we aren’t finding out baby’s gender. ??? But to me, it's just mainly about getting cuter clothes...right?

But my thinking is what if we have a girl and she doesn’t like pink? Or what if we have a boy and he gets sick of all blue? And aren’t there items that are a little more important than clothes?? I just went for non-gender specific items and I love all the stuff we registered for. We are planning on having more than one, so the best advice I received was "get neutral colors when it comes to the bigger items like car seat, crib, stroller, pack n play, etc., because you never know what baby number two will be". It seems like babies grow out of the clothes so quickly… I think I’m going to stick to the three showers before.

I know everyone wants to meet baby (and they will!), but I also hear mom is pretty tired those first four weeks and the last thing I’ll want to do is get ready for a shower when I'm leaking, tired, nursing and bleeding. Plus, there’s going the be announcements to get out and the baptism to get ready for too! A shower after means organizing the nursery even more when more stuff comes in, and when I'm totally exhausted. Seems like more work to me...I don’t know?

My next battle is day care. More people voiced their opinion that I need to get my act together and get going. Hard to do when I’m not even holding our precious little bundle and it really makes me sick thinking about handing off our baby to someone even before he/she is born. Jeez! But if all goes well and baby is on time, April 16 will be the day I go on maternity leave. I plan on taking 12 weeks. That means I go back to my lovely job July 9.

Side view at 22 weeks!

The one day care I do trust is attached to our church. Since I worked at our church for four years when I first moved to Minnesota, I really became familiar with the Early Learning Center and the staff. I know they are awesome. I know they can be trusted. They are ranked super high and offer great values and tons of love. However, it’s not the most ideal location for us (meaning we have to cross the dreaded 169 Bloomington Ferry Bridge, which is usually backed up for miles) and it is VERY expensive. Like we’re talking another mortgage payment. How on earth do people afford day care???

In the meantime, I joined a Bible Study at my church and met this wonderful new friend. She has three beautiful children and I just felt like I needed to know her more. Soon we became friends on Facebook and she mentioned something about being a stay-at-home mom and loving life. I jokingly asked if she’d like to take on one more. And well… a nice little friendship was born! We met for hot chocolate and tea last night and she was super open and honest about motherhood and all the changes and even brought her youngest. I felt an instant connection with her and her strength and vision for life and her kids blew me away. She reminded me it's OK to have crazy thoughts right now. Sometimes I'll be at my desk at work and wonder what the heck I'm doing. Can I do this?

She also gets that kids need structure, consistency and discipline - something my mom keeps reminding me is very important. Soon we were talking about day care. She said she would love to watch our little one, but there was no pressure to go with her or to come up with an answer. All I know is I left feeling really good. Like God was working behind the scenes there. I swear such great things have come out of our church. So we’ll see!!!

And again, I get unsolicited advice in this area too...with people telling me their views on in-home versus a center. People will try to scare the daylights out of you. I already have HUGE trust issues from what happened to my best friend's baby. But I know I can't stop trusting everyone I come in contact with - life would be pretty hard then. Bottom line: there are pros and cons for both and everyone has different needs and wants and ideas on what they'd like their family structure to be. And I say, they can make their own decision on that. And I'm going to go with my gut on this one. 

Just really loving life! Oh, and I really need to get on those Christmas cards...

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