What we’ve been up to today

learning how to keep a pasi in…

meeting DaddyGrand…

trying to do a little sunbathing during our snowstorm…

and making sure all attention isn’t taken by the newest little one…

I’d say it’s been a good day so far!

my heart is so full…

Welcome…

John Caleb

Born February 5 at 4:36 pm

9 lbs 14 oz, 21.5 in

We are home now and we are all doing great. We are so thankful for such a healthy little (big!) boy!

I went into the hospital Friday morning to be induced since I was a week and 2 days past my due date. They broke my water around 10 am and we started walking the halls to try and get my labor started. We were having a small snow storm and this is what it looked like outside the hospital…

We walked and walked and walked…till 2:30 pm and though I was having some contractions, they wern’t doing much to progress my labor. So, the doctor made me start on pitocin. This was the one thing that I really wanted to avoid, but it seemed to be just what my body needed to kick me into labor. They gave me the smallest dose you can get at 2:45 and by 4 pm i was ready to push! The doctor however was stuck in traffic and so I wasn’t allowed to push until she got there…by far this was the worst part of the day! She finally got there, I started pushing, and 9 minutes later baby John was in my arms – all 9 lbs and 14 oz of him! It was such a wonderful experience.

He laid on me and ate and snuggled for about an hour, then got weighed and measured, etc….

Colby was so wonderful all day and was so excited to meet his first son!

We left the hospital last night…

…had a great first night at home, and now we’re waiting on Ellie Jane to get here this afternoon. I can’t wait to have our whole family together and for Ellie Jane to meet her little brother.

Thanks for all the prayers for us. We are so thankful to our Father for our son!

You should make this.

At this point, I’m up for trying just about anything to get this baby moving. I’ve tried walking, walking, walking, pineapple, evening primrose oil, stairs, red raspberry leaf tea, and the list goes on and on. 

So, tonight I decided to try spicy food. I made Cajun Chicken Pasta from PW. 

Oh my goodness. 

It was so good! Colby said it tasted like something you would eat in a Cajun restaurant. And it is super easy to make. 

The only thing I did different was add a jalapeno and extra cayenne pepper to up the spicy factor. And I used that fresh whole wheat pasta you buy in the refrigerated section next to the cheese. And added fresh parmesan at the end. 

You should make this right now.

And maybe, just maybe, this will do the trick for me?!

The things people say, part 3

Colby and I walked into a resturant tonight for dinner (by ourselves, without having to find a baby sitter!).

As soon as we walked in, I noticed a girl – probably college age – staring at me. Really staring. And not just at me, particularly at m belly.

We walked past her and she stopped me and said,

“Oohh my goosshh! Are you having twins?! You must be!”

“Nope, just one.” I said.

“Are you suurre??!!” she said

Just what a woman who is 40+ weeks prego wants to hear.

She might as well have said “Ohh my goosh! You look like a cow!”

Yummy pancake recipe

Can you tell I’m childless – 2 posts in one day!

With both of my pregnancies, pancakes, icecream, and fruit have all sounded good throughout the whole 40 weeks. Too bad its not spinach or something (which, unfortunately has tasted like dirt to me at some point during both pregnancies…)

Anyway -

I just tried this pancake recipe recently and it’s a new favorite. Bonus – they freeze great so I can pop them in the toaster for a quick breakfast. And, they are pretty healthy (until you put peanut butter and syrup on them like we like )

The recipe is from this great little magazine that I have no idea how I started getting, but I really like called Kiwi Magazine.

Whole Wheat Banana Cinnamon Pancakes

2 1/4 c whole wheat flour
2 T sugar or rapadura
2 t baking powder
¼ t baking soda
¼ t salt
1 t cinnamon
½ t nutmeg
1 egg
3 T oil or melted butter ( I used melted coconut oil)
2 c buttermilk
1 t vanilla
2 bananas, mashed

Mix dry ingredients.
Mix egg, butter, buttermilk, vanilla, and bananas.
Mix all together.

Cook in cast iron skillet in butter until brown.
Freeze great after cooled

Yum!

No Baby Yet…

Well, I’m still pregnant. My due date was this past Wednesday. People keep asking me if I’m miserable.

I’m really not. Actually, I feel good.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m very ready to have this baby. But I feel good.

I have carpal tunnel syndrome in my hands again, like last time. It’s actually more annoying than anything else about being 41 weeks pregnant at this point!

Ellie Jane has been with my parents for 5 days. She flew down with my dad last Wednesday. As she was walking away with him, she just waved and waved and blew kisses and said “Bye-bye” like it was no big deal. Colby and I were both teary.

She has had a ball with them! (No surprise…she has had no lack of attention, juice, new toys, or warm weather!) We miss her like crazy, but I’m so glad she’s gettting to hang out with them.

I forgot how easy life is with out a baby. I cleaned my house on Thursday and it is still clean! Colby and I have gone on several dates – just the two of us, and no hassle of finding a baby sitter. We even went to a movie. I’ve slept until at least 7:15 every day since Thursday, we’ve eaten when we felt like eating – not necessarily at meal times, and I went grocery shopping all alone. So fun!

But I still can’t wait till she gets back!

I also can’t wait for this little guy to get here.

My doctor made me schedule an induction for Friday morning. I really really don’t want to be induced. Been there, done that, don’t care to do it again. But, I will be 41.5 weeks at that point and this is no small baby.

We’ve tried just about every at home induction method that I have heard of except for castor oil and eggplant parmesan.  I’m scared of castor oil.

Any suggestions?

Oh, and I got a double stroller. I’m so excited about ti! I’ve been scouring craigslist here and in AL looking for a good double jogging stroller. I was looking at BOB’s and Baby Jogger’s city mini. But, I found this one yesterday…

It has all the features that a BOB has – swivel front wheel, easy to fold, compact when folded, fits through a normal door, really easy to manuver, independently reclining on each side. And my carseat can pop in one side while Ellie Jane rides in the other. And it was only $80. Yeah!

So now if we can just get this baby to make his way into the world…

I’ll keep you posted!

The Nursery

I think the Nursery is just about done.

Now all we need is a baby!

The goal was to give a little wink and a nod to Alabama Football.

See, back in September when we found out we were having a boy, one of the first things Colby said was “His room should be an Alabama Football Nursery!”

To which I ever so politely replied “Heck No!” All I could think about was black and white houndstooth and crimson walls and elephants everywhere.

But, then I started thinking about how much the Williamson men love Alabama Football and how they do have decent colors and how Colby would love for his first son to grow up loving the team as much as him…and so I decided to rise to the challenge of creating an Alabama Football nursery.

And I actually had a lot of fun doing it!

The first thing I knew I wanted was red and white ticking. So I made all the bedding with ticking and this really nubby muslin…

Since this is the second baby bed we have in our house now, we snagged this one on craigslist for $20. I love the old Jenny Lind style cribs. And my mom sent Colby this mobile. It is the only over the top Alabama Football item in the room. It even plays the fight song…

The walls are painted “Shiloh” by Ace paints (but I used Behr paint base because they have a primer and paint all in one that is cheaper and easier than having to prime and paint). I love the color. It is kind of a putty color – a grey with brown undertones. I wish my living room was this color.

I think this is my favorite part of his room…

Mom and I found this red chest at Ikea and it’s exactly what I had pictured in my head. And the prints…

…are reproductions of game day programs from the 40’s and 50’s. I really love the way they turned out.

And wanna know something cool? Howard College (top left pic) is what Samford University – where Colby and I graduated from – used to be called.

And here’s the real life picture…

All the random baby stuff that I have to figure out where to put. That changing table (also a craigslist find) is in desperate need of some baskets. Anyone seen cute (affordable) ones anywhere? I think I want natural woven baskets and I’ll make ticking liners.

Ellie Jane is really into taking care of her baby doll right now. Her favorite thing to do is put her baby in all the baby stuff. She had just finished rocking her baby in the carseat when I took this picture. While I’m very excited that she is so enthusiastic about caring for a baby, we’re going to have to work on being gentle when the real baby gets here!

So, that’s the nursery for now.

Baby boy, we’re all arms over here…ready and waiting!

At home induction methods…

Ever wonder what it looks like to feed 40 hungry college boys after they’ve played broomball for 2 hours?

(I’ve lived here 4 years now and I still think it’s funny to see so many pairs of shoes by the door and so many bare feet walking around my house!)

I made:

10 pounds of spaghetti (10 pounds of meat worth of sauce)

(I ran out of room in my fridge, so I stored the sauce on my back porch overnight. One of the perks of living in sub-zero temps)

4 boxes of industrial size noodles (I think they were 3 lbs each)

11 loaves of garlic bread

(Ellie Jane was a big help while I cooked…she has become an excellent taste tester.)

3 half sheet pans of brownies (100+ brownies)

5 gallons of sweet tea

AND I RAN OUT OF EVERYTHING.

I was really hoping feeding that many people would put me into labor…

I’m still waiting…anyone have any other suggestions?!

Freezer Meals

Several people asked for the recipes I used to stock my freezer.

So, unless you’re interested in recipes, this might be a rather boring post.

Also, I learned a few things from doing this. Just in case you’d like to stock your freezer, here are some tips:

* I blocked off 2 whole days to grocery shop and cook and I spent the day before making a plan.

* I made a list of everything I was going to make, in the order I should make it (like I made the chckens first so I’d have meat for the pot pies, etc) Then I had all my recipes printed out and in order. Then I made a grocery list.

* This would have been really hard to do if Ellie Jane had been with me all day. So, I planned to do it on a day when Colby was off and could keep her one day, then the next day she went and played with a friend for a couple hours and then I had her nap to work.

* I bough plenty of freezer bags, foil, plastic wrap, and disposable pans. It made it much easier already having all the storage stuff I needed. Also, Make sure you have plenty of freezer space!

* I was about 36 weeks prego when I did this. It would have been much easier if I had done it earlier. It was really tiring being on my feet for that long.

Okay, i think that’s it. Here’s the recipes…

Chicken Enchiladas I followed this recipe exactly except I omitted the olives and added black beans – used sour cream, whole wheat tortillas, and made the enchilada sauce that was linked. Really yummy

Lasagna This is seriously good lasagna! I made several recipes worth and cooked them in 8×8 disposable pans. I froze them unbaked.

Veg-Beef Soup:

2 lbs stew beef, cubed

5 (28 oz) cans beef broth ( I use some water so it’s not too salty)

2 (15 oz) cans white corn, drain

1 (28 oz) can dice tomatoes with juice

2+ c green beans, frozen or fresh

1 (10 oz) pkg frozen lima beans

2 yellow onions, chopped

1 1/2 c sliced carrots

1 c chop celery

2 bay leaves

1 T Worcestershire

8-10 drops tabasco

Salt and Pepper

2 potatoes, peel and dice

1 c slice mushrooms

I added frozen peas too.

Brown beef in skillet in olive oil. Add beef, broth, corn, tomatoes, green beans, lima beans, onions, carrots, celery, bay leaves, Worcestershire, Tabasco, salt and pepper to stock pot. Bring to boil then reduce heat to low and simmer for 1-2 hours until beef is tender.

Add the potatoes, mushrooms, and peas and return to boil. Boil for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are tender. Discard bay leaves.

I made a double batch and froze in 8 c portions in freezer bags once it was cooled. This is one of our favorite soups and it has so many good veggies in it! It’s great with cornbread.

Santa Fe Soup - this is one of those open cans and dump recipes. We really like it though…

2 lbs ground beef
2 large white onions, chopped
2 pkgs dry ranch dressing
2 pkgs taco seasoning ( I keep a jar of this on hand and use it instead of the packages you buy at the store)
1 small can green chiles, drained
1 – 16 oz can kidney beans
1 – 16 oz can pinto beans
1 – 16 oz can black beans
1 – 16 oz can diced tomatoes
1 – 16 oz can rotel tomatoes
2 – 16 oz cans white shoepeg corn
2 c. water (I use 1 c chicken stock and 1 c beef stock when I have them)

Brown beef and then open and dump everything in. I drain and rinse all the beans and corn. Simmer for 2+ hours. After it cooled, I stored it in 8 c portions in freezer bags. It’s great with cheese, sour cream or yogurt, and corn chips

Pork Tenderloin

This is one of our favorite meals. I just made the marinade and froze the meat in the marinade. When we want it, I’ll just defrost it and cook as usual.

Put Tenderloin(s) in a freezer bag. drizzle with olive oil (about 1/3 cup), salt, pepper, cavenndars seasoning, and lemon pepper. Add Worcestershire and soy sauce to cover (about 1/3 c each). Drizzle with Pickapeppa sauce and honey.

When ready to cook, defrost and put in baking dish. Add 1/2-1 c white wine. Bake 350 for 45 minutes.

Mustard Chicken

Again, i just made the marinade and froze the chicken in it.

½ c brown sugar
6 T evoo
¼ c apple cider vinegar
3 cloves garlic, crushed
3 T coarse grain mustard
2 T fresh lime juice
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 t salt
1 t pepper

Wisk together. I cube 3-4 chicken breasts and add to marinade. When ready to cook, defrost and pour in baking dish. Cook on 350 for 40 minutes. Serve over brown rice.

BBQ Chicken - I just froze chicken breasts portioned out for a meal in our favorite BBQ sauce. Then, for dinner, I just pull one out and put the chicken and sauce in the crock pot and cook on low all day. I then shred it and serve it on whole wheat buns. We like these sandwiches with oven fries and salad.

Pizza Crust - I made several batched of whole wheat pizza crust dough to  pull out and make a quick dinner. This recipe makes a great crust – good texture and taste.

Salsa Verde Meat-

We love this recipe! I use this meat for tacos, burritos, etc. Also when I make it I make extra burritos and freeze them to pull out when the need arises. I just add some black beans, peppers, cheese, sometimes rice, and wrap in tortilla and freeze.
I have made this with chicken or beef. I’m sure pork would be good also.

1-2 lbs meat, cubed
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, grated
1 c salsa verde (i used hertz or trader joes)
2 T taco seasoning

1. Brown the meat in a little evoo, just to get some color on it. Don’t cook it all the way. Throw it in your slow cooker/crock pot.
2. Saute onion and garlic in the same pan and scrap up all the brown bits from the bottom. Once the onions and garlic are fragrant (about 3-5 minutes), pour in the salsa verde and taco seasoning.
3. Mix all together and them put it all in the crock pot.
4. set on low and let it cook all day – 6-8 hours. At some point (after 5 hours or so) i use 2 forks and shred the meat.

Chicken Pot Pie Filling:

2 cups cooked, chopped chicken breast
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup cooked, diced carrots
1/2 cup cooked, diced potatoes (optional – I don’t use)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dried thyme

Combine chicken breast, peas, carrots, and potatoes in a bowl; set aside. In medium saucepan, melt butter. Sauté onion until clear. Whisk in flour and cook until bubbly. Whisk in broth and milk. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened. Stir in seasonings. Pour over chicken-vegetable mixture and stir to combine. Cool completely. I store the filling in freezer bags. Then, I defrost the filling and top it with a crust then bake at 350 for about 45 – 60  minutes, until crust is brown and filling is bubbling.

Spaghetti Sauce

This was originally Noel Piper’s recipe. I tweaked it a little to suite our taste, and it is now one of our very favorite meals!

3 pounds ground meat (beef or turkey or combination with Italian Sausage)
1 tsp black pepper
1 T oregano
1 T basil
1 T garlic powder
3 bay leaves
1 T salt
3 T Worcestershire Sauce (if you have it)
3 T dried parsley
1 large onion
10 drops Tabasco Sauce (optional. Doesn’t make it hot, just gives a slight zing)
7-8 (15) oz cans Tomato Sauce

Brown meat then add everything else. Simmer for 2 hours. Serve over noodles. (I use all dried herbs, but I’m sure fresh would be great if you have them)

I divide this in thirds and freeze it in freezer bags.

Salsa Verde Enchiladas I make these almost exactly as the recipe says – I use meat from a roasted chicken I make (see recipe below), use whole wheat tortillas, Monterrey jack cheese, and I made several recipes worth and put them in 8×8 disposable pans. I cooked them completely, them cooled and froze them.

I also made several Roast Chickens, shredded the meat to use, and made Broth from the bones to use for soups, etc. I’ve been making the Roast Chickens in my crock pot – I rub the Whole Chicken with olive oil, season it with McCormicks Montreal Chicken Seasoning or Cavendars, then cook it on low for about 8 hours. It is so good and tender! Then I shred or chop all the meat and put all the bones and skin back in the crock pot (with the liquid from cooking the chicken earlier) and add an onion, some carrots, a few cloves of garlic,  celery, a bay leaf, and a chicken foot if I have one and cover it all with water. I cook it on low overnight then strain it in the morning. It makes a great chicken broth with lots of good minerals from the bones.

Bran Muffins

This batter keeps for up to 6 weeks in the fridge. I made all of them and frozen them by the dozen in freezer bags. These are my favorite muffins!

6 c all bran cereal
2 c boiling water
1 c oil (I used coconut oil)
4 eggs, beaten
3 c sugar (I used 1 c sugar, 1 c rapadura)
1 quart buttermilk
5 c flour (I used half whole wheat)
5 t baking soda
2 t salt
24 oz apple butter
2 c walnuts (optional)
2 c raisins (optional)

- Pour boiling water over 2 c of bran cereal. Add oil and mix
- Mix in a separate bowl eggs, sugar, buttermilk, and rest of bran in that order
- in separate bowl, sift flour, salt and soda
-Combine all ingredients, stir in apple butter, walnuts, and raisins
- bake in greased muffin pans at 400 for 15-20 minutes

Waffles - we love this recipe and we love waffles with peanut butter for breakfast. I made a big batch of these and froze them. We pop them in the toaster when ready to eat them.

Whole Wheat Pie Crust - I use this for the chicken pot pie

1 c butter, cold and cubed

1/2 c crisco  (i use coconut oil instead)

3 c whole wheat flour

1 egg

5 T cold water

1 T white vinegar

In a large bowl, with a pastry cutter, gradually work the butter and coconut oil into the flour til it’s the size of peas.  In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork and then pour it into the flour mixture. Add 5 tablespoons of cold water, 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir together gently until all of the ingredients are incorporated.

Separate the dough into thirds. Form 3 evenly sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large Ziploc bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about ½ inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them.

When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. On a floured surface roll the dough, starting at the center and working your way out.

Pumpkin Rolls – I made these for a Christmas meal, but I’m glad I have some in my freezer now – they are so good! They don’t taste at all like pumpkin.

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup warm water
2 cup warm milk
¼ cup butter, softened or melted
2 cup mashed cooked pumpkin (I used one can of pumpkin.)
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup wheat germ (can omit and use flour instead)
10-12 cup all-purpose flour (I use half white and half whole wheat flour)
7 teaspoons dry yeast

In large mixing bowl, combine sugar, water, milk, butter, pumpkin, and salt. Mix well. Add wheat germ, 7-8 cups of the flour, and yeast. Mix, and then continue adding flour and kneading until dough is elastic and not sticky.

Place dough in greased bowl; grease top of dough, cover with a towel, and set in a warm place until doubled (about 1 hour). Punch dough down and divide into thirds. Divide each third into 16 pieces and shape into balls.

Place on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes, until tops are golden. Brush with melted butter as soon as they come out of the oven.

Yield: 4 dozen rolls

I also made a batch of this chocolate chip cookie dough. It is so good! In fact, it’s already gone

I think that’s it. That was almost as tiring as actually cooking it all! Let me know if there are any question, and I’d love more good freezer meal recipes!