May 6

Little man’s second trip to San Francisco and he’s certainly had an interesting week.
This is my last work trip (besides a day trip to Philly) until next October. I’ve been looking forward to this week but mostly just to have it done with so we can focus on baby. I work for a non-profit company doing event planning and this week we had three events back-to-back with each overlapping a day. Hectic, but fun.

We’re going to have to have a guest post from Andy on his adventures in SF! Andy joined me in San Francisco for a few reasons. 1) We kind of like each other and like being with each other, 2) I didn’t know how big the belly was going to be by 30 weeks and just how much pregnancy was going to effect me at this point, and 3) it’s just nice to have an extra set of hands onsite at my conferences. At the end of the conference, we took a 36 hour trip to Monterrey.

Andy was a huge help and the rest of our staff loved having him around as well. He schleped boxes, stuffed bags, did surgery on broken signs, ran errands, and was just so helpful! We paid him in beer and food.

Baby did pretty well this week though being on my feet for 5 days straight put us both into shock. I had my first Braxton Hicks this week and I’m sure it had to do with being on my feet. I tried very hard to stay hydrated and sit when I had the chance. Hopefully, next week, they’ll taper off since I’ll be at my desk again.

I assumed I’d have crazy charlie horses this week since I’d be on my feet and in heels but thankfully, only one tiny one. Phew!! Every time I went up the escalator, I’d use the 30 second break to stop walking and stretch my calves. Maybe that helped?

The belly grew big time this week. I could be crazy but my theory is I spend so much time at my desk on a regular basis that gravity finally took over. Maternity clothes that kind of fit last week, definitely fit this week. It could also be the sourdough bread I ate on the first day. Andy and I might have had a loaf each! It’s that good.

The flight home was interesting. He’s still digging around my hip. I spent half of the flight leaning to the right to try and keep him out of there.

Overall, it was a good week and now that we’re home and the conferences are done, we can really start getting ready for little man.

A tasty little melt-in-your-mouth, sugary treat! If you have a candy thermometer, they’re super easy to make.

The first time I tried these was on a trip to Charleston, SC. Before then, I didn’t even like pecans. Funny how a little sugar can change your mind.

When I attend trade shows for work, there are a few convention and visitors bureaus that always seem to hand-out pralines to lure you in (New Orleans, Charleston and Savannah). It always works! Then, I try to just take a nibble, save the rest for later or throw it away. That doesn’t work. I eat the whole thing.

I’ve never made pralines before so I was excited to see Shawnda pick these for this week’s Project Pastry Queen. After making them, I ate one (maybe two) and put the rest in a container for Andy to take to work so I didn’t polish them off.

INGREDIENTS

1 C whole (I used chopped) pecans
½ C buttermilk
½  tsp baking soda
11/2 C sugar
1 Tbsp corn syrup
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Spread pecans on a baking sheet and roast for 7-9 min.
3. Combine the buttermilk, baking soda, sugar, corn syrup, and butter in a heavy bottom pot.
4. Cook over medium heat until you reach soft ball stage (234 – 240 degrees on a candy thermometer).
5. Remove from heat and add the pecans and vanilla.
6. Beat with a wooden spoon for up to 10 min (it only took me about 3-4 min), until the mixture is losing its gloss, starts getting creamy, and thickens. Don’t over beat.
7. Drop heaping tablespoons onto a silpat or sheet of wax paper.
8. Let the candies cool completely.

NOTES

Makes 12 pralines.

Slightly adapted from The Pastry Queen by Rebecca Rather.

April 29

Baby boy has found mama’s ribs! Awesome…

He’s also found a nook in my left hip where he likes to dig around. I’ve been feeling this for a few weeks but as he gets larger, oh my! I wouldn’t say it hurts, it’s just uncomfortable and awkward feeling. There’s a little bony lump I keep pushing out of the way. A fist? A foot? Even when he jabs me or it hurts a little, I still love it. I love feeling all his movements.

Baby Bubba is still growing like a weed and so is my belly. The books say he should be gaining about a ½ a pound I should be gaining between ¾ – 1 lb a week from here on out. Really? Here we go!

We might have found a rocker! It’s the ugliest darn thing you ever seen but it’s soooo comfy and cheap. I could sleep in this thing for days. We’ll probably look a few more times to see if we like anything better but, we might just end up with an ugly, overstuffed, old-person’s house rocker. Oh well!

We leave on Saturday for my last work trip and I’m anxious to see how I’m going to hold up. Andy is coming with me to help me out and just in case. I’ll be on my feet a lot and will have very long days. We’re also taking a 36-hour trip to Monterey at the end. We might be too exhausted to do anything but at least we’ll be at the beach. Fingers crossed for some amazing weather and that baby stays right where he is!

*Update* National Chocolate Chip Day…not Chocolate Chip Cookie Day. Either way, sounds good to me!

To celebrate National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, I thought I’d share my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe with you. There’s really nothing fancy to it and it’s an easy, no-fail, soft cookie recipe. I like to keep either frozen cookie dough or frozen cookies on hand for those quick fixes.

The secret that’s not so secret, is adding pudding to the cookies. You can use chocolate, vanilla, or any other flavor. Chocolate is my favorite (this picture is with vanilla). I do find that the regular pudding is better than the sugar-free/fat-free kinds.

I’m always on the hunt for new cookies recipes. What’s your favorite?

There are a few tricks I’ve learned in making soft cookies:

• use dark brown sugar and more brown sugar than white
• chill the dough before cooking
• use softened but not too soft of butter
• don’t add too much flour!
• let the cookies completely cool on the pan before removing. This keeps the moisture from escaping the bottom of the cookies which makes them crispy.

INGREDIENTS
1 C butter or margarine, softened
¼ C sugar
¾ C light brown sugar
1 (3.4 oz) package instant pudding
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 tsp baking soda
2 ¼ C AP flour
12 oz. chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cream the butter and sugars.
3. Beat in the pudding mix and vanilla.
4. Beat in the eggs until just combined.
5. Gradually stir in flour and baking soda.
6. Stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Place heaping tsp of dough on ungreased cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
9. Let completely cool on pan before removing.

NOTES

Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

April 22

Yeah, now we’re talking a real bump!

We had our 28 week appointment (a bit late) which was the glucose test. I passed. Yay! While there, the doctor mentioned they’d try again to measure his head. Again, I thought this was a routine visit with NO sonogram so no one came with me. They got it this time. Barely! His head is just buried down there. Everything is measuring fine and the doc says I’m good to travel for work in a couple of weeks (last trip).

So, I’m pretty excited about having a real preggo belly but, it’s already hurting me. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s so low, but I’m getting A LOT of pressure and joint pain. I’ve even started wearing a support band when I work out.

You can also see that my belly button and skin are doing weird stuff! The button isn’t an outie but just strange looking. It still gets tender here and there too. My skin is a bit red and a bit splotchy. I guess it’s just the stretching.

And, the leg cramps continue. I have about one small one every night. They’re not too bad but one night, OUCH! I’ve never had a charlie horse like that. It was so bad, I was limping for a day. It makes me cringe when I think back to it. Wow, that hurt!

Even with my complaints, I still think I’m having a fairly easy pregnancy.

Andy set up the crib this week. Well actually, he set it up twice! He started setting it up in the living room while I was cooking dinner.

Me: “Do you think that will fit through the bedroom door?”

Andy: “Yeah, sure. No problem. I’m about 93% sure.”

Me: “Ok”

20 minutes later…

Andy: “So, it’s not going to fit through the door.”

🙂

April 15

Holy smokes! We’ve hit the third trimester. Not only does this freak me out a bit but it’s also very reassuring. At this point in his development, he has better and better chances of surviving if he were to come early. Of course, the longer he’s in the better, it just makes me feel a bit more at ease.

I had another follow-up comprehensive appointment this week. They were supposed to just get the measurements of his profile, but since I went to a different office, they wanted to do the whole thing again. I was definitely not disappointed to see him again, but I would have like Andy or my mom to be there too.

Guess what! Little man didn’t cooperate…again. He had his head buried down in my pelvis and wouldn’t budge even after an hour of flipping from my left to right and lots of poking around by the tech. He was active the whole time but just wouldn’t move his head. The tech told me he’s getting too big to get the correct measurements since there’s not as much fluid and, the earlier the sonogram, the better the measurements since every baby develops differently. After the doctor review the results, they’ll decide if we need to come back a 4th time. Whoa!

I know it looks like a profile but supposedly, it’s not the exact angle they’re looking for.

I’ve been feeling lopsided for a few days now. Guess I wasn’t imagining it. With his head down, his body is curved up my left side. I’ve been feeling this round something on the top left of my belly. I now think it’s been his bum. His feet are just above my belly button. So cute to think of this guy all curled up and comfy in there. So cute, except I think he sits on my bladder.

With one of our earliest sonograms, we thought he looked like he had long legs. But, I also thought it might be my imagination. Nope, not my imagination! His femur length is measuring 1 week and 2 days ahead of the rest of him. He’s got his momma’s long legs!

His estimated weight is 2 pounds 7 ounces and due date is a day earlier (July 13) than last time. The tech also told me the weight is estimated within 6 ounces and the due date within 2 weeks.

We’re just happy to know everything is looking good!

April 8

Oh, the leg cramps. Every night in both legs. Totally over this symptom.

I was emailing with someone the other day and I guess counting down didn’t seem so scary until I actually wrote to her that we only have 13 weeks left. Oh my! 13 weeks. Except for a few moments of panic, I’ve been fairly relaxed about the baby. Not so much anymore.

13 Weeks – and that’s assuming he stays in until 40 weeks. Really, we should plan on more like 10 weeks to be realistic and be prepared. I’m typically a very organized person (I am a meeting planner in my work life.) but this whole baby thing has just thrown me for a loop. Really, is there anyone that’s prepared for a baby? I don’t think so.

So, here are a few things we’re thinking about this week:

• refinishing baby furniture (Andy’s job)
• cleaning out the nursery (right now it’s storage!)
• discussing our birth plan
• breast feeding – Had a minor freak out about this one. Nothing that a 4 am Amazon book order didn’t cure.
• Glider/Rocker – can’t find one we love 😦

Besides thinking about baby, this is my busiest time for work. We have three conferences in the first week of May out in San Francisco. The good news, they’re in the same location. The bad news, they’re three separate events. It’s killing me. So thankful that I work from home because the work days have been 12+ hours days since we got back from Austin.

Plus, insomnia has begun. OVERWHELMED…but we’ll make it through.

There is this other bundle of joy in our life who makes me forget about the craziness. Our two-year old nephew, Nate. On Easter, I asked him if he knew what was in my belly. He said “baby” and at the end of the night when he was saying bye, he gave the baby belly loves. His version of giving loves is tilting his head and leaning in towards you. Aww!

Nate with his new “razor and shaving cream.” I can’t help but to take blurry pictures of this kid b/c I’m always laughing too hard.

This picture says it all. You know it’s good when it’s gone before the brownies and chocolate covered strawberries.I don’t think I’ve actually ever tried rice pudding. The thought of it has always been a bit weird to me.  Cooked rice for dessert? So, when it was my week to choose the recipe for Project Pastry Queen, I saw the rice pudding and was curious, but only because it was dulce de leche. It had a method for making the dulce de leche I’ve been wanting to try.

Basically, you take a can of sweetened condensed milk, simmer it for about an hour, and magically this amazing sauce is created. Oooh, then you save a bit and whip it into the whipped cream.

It wasn’t the prettiest of desserts, but darn was it delicious.

So, if you’re like me and rice pudding sounds scary, give it a whirl. It’s worth it.

INGREDIENTS

Rice Pudding
1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 C Abrorio rice
2 C water
1 ½ C milk
4 large egg yolks
¼ C firmly packed golden brown sugar
1 ½ C heavy whipping cream
2 vanilla beans, split in half, seed scraped out a reserved
3 tablespoons amaretto liqueur (optional)

Garnish
1 C slivered almonds
1 C chilled heavy whipping cream
1/3 C dulce de leche (leftover from above)

DIRECTIONS

Dulce de Leche

1. Coat a 5-6 C ovenproof casserole or soufflé dish with cooking spray.
2. Remove the paper wrapper from the can of sweetened condensed milk.
3. Use a can opener to make two small punctures on opposite sides of the top of the can.
4. Set the milk in a medium saucepan, puncture side up.
5. Fill the medium saucepan with water to reach two-thirds of te way up the sides of the can.
6. Cover the saucepan and bring the water to a boil over high heat.
7. Lower the heat until the water simmers.
8. Simmer the milk about 1 hour. (Mine took about an hour and a half to get to the right color and probably could have left it longer.) Check the saucepan periodically, adding water to ensure the water level does not drop below halfway. A bit of milk may seep out of the small holes in the can.
9. Cook until the milk pooled on top of the can has turned a deep golden brown.
10. Remove the can from the simmering water using a pot holder or tongs.
11. Open the can carefully and use a rubbers spatula to sppon 1 C of the cooked milk into a measuring cup. Save the rest for the whipped cream.

Pudding

1. Bring the rice and water to a boil in a medium saucepan and simmer for 5 min.
2. Drain the rice in a colander, pour back into the saucepan, and add the milk.
3. Cover and simmer the rice for 20-25 min, until the milk is absorbed.
4. Transfer the rice to a bowl.
5. Preheat the oven to 325. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and brown sugar until smooth.
6. In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, bring the cream, 1 C dulce de leche, and vanilla bean pods and their beans to a boil.
7. Remove the vanilla bean pods.
8. Whisk 2 Tbls of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Be sure to do this step slowly or the yolks may begin to cook)
9. Pour the rest of the cream mixture in a slow, steady stream into the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly.
10. Add the cooked rice and mix to combine.
11. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish and bake for 45-50 min, until the top is browned and toothpick stuck into the middle comes out almost clean. (Mine cooked for a little over an hour and probably could have used 10 more min.
12. Serve the pudding warm or at room temperature and top with garnish below.

Garnish

1. Arrange the almond slivers on a baking sheet in a single layer and toast them in the over 7-9 min, until golden brown and aromatic.
2. Using a mixer with a whisk attachment beat the cream in a large bowl on high speed until soft peaks being to form.
3. Add 1/3 C of the remaining dulce de leche and beat until incorporated.

NOTES

Recipe from Rebecca Rather’s The Pastry Queen.

Have you ever had those days, weeks, months, where you just can’t get ahead, or even caught up? Yeah, I know I’m not the first but it sure is getting old. Life is way too hectic right now and blogging has sadly taken place on the bottom of the to-do list. Hopefully, this is only the case for two more weeks. Don’t worry, everything’s ok, I’m just working 12+ hour days along with trying to plan for this little one coming soon.

Of course, we do still eat when I’m busy but dinners just may be a bit quicker and unfortunately, less healthy as well (a really terrible excuse, I know!). Since I won’t be able to blog about some of the things we’ve been eating, I thought I’d at least leave you a list with some links to some really great recipes I’ve made variations of over the past few weeks. We had my parents over last weekend so I did make a nice meal that night and tried a bunch of new recipes.

No fear, I’ll be back soon. In fact, this week, I’m hosting over at Project Pastry Queen with Dulce de Leche Arborio Rice Pudding. I’ll give you a hint…I made the dulce de leche portion already and it’s pretty darn awesome.

Peanut Buttercups with Peanut-Penuche Icing – I made these for Easter and everyone liked them except for me. 😦

Oatmeal Crisps – these are very similar to Nature Valley’s granola bars (but better and slightly chewy) and so easy to make. These are definitely an item that will be on standby for quick snacks once the baby gets here. Highly recommended!

Wild Rice Cakes – a new way to eat and present wild rice. My version was a bit different but the concept is the same.

Asparagus, Peas, and Basil – I’ve got to admit, I hadn’t ever thought of combining these ingredients but it works! And, I should also mention we have awesome friends who grow asparagus and let us come pick whenever we want. So lucky and sooo delicious!

Sitr fry – A Trader Joe’s feast! Trader Ming’s Soyaki with frozen stir-fry veggies (plus some fresh) and Portobello Mushroom Chicken Sausage.

Super Soft and Fluffy Dinner Rolls – My only improvement would be to add salt. These were one of the quicker and easier dinner roll recipes I’ve found.

Cauliflower Gratin – A totally unhealthy way to enjoy cauliflower

White Chocolate Souffle Cake with Roasted Grapes – you’ll have to wait for this one because I did get a few pictures and plan to blog about this one.

Roasted Vegetable Pasta with Lemon Mascarpone Sauce and Inside-Out Chicken Cordon Bleu – You’ll have to wait for this one as well. I made it after one of those days I couldn’t take working any longer. I NEEDED to cook and this was well worth it.

Until next time, which hopefully is very soon!

April 1

The first part of the week we were still in Austin. Hopefully, I’ve convinced Andy we need to move here. Ahh…love it!

Surprise, surprise! Only a one-pound increase from the vacation. That means I’ve officially hit the 10-pound mark. My guess is I’ll start to pack it on in the next few weeks.

Little man is a whole 2 pounds now! Crazy how it took 26 weeks to get him to 2 pounds and he’ll gain probably at least 5 more in the next 14 weeks. Yikes!

After we got home, Baby Ruf hadn’t really been kicking as much. It was making me nervous but he was definitely still moving and we were still hitting the “at least 10 movements in 24 hours.” I was about to call the doctor when he must have realized he was making his momma nervous. He was going at it ALL day!! Maybe he just need a little rest from such a big trip.

We started our baby registry this week. How the heck do people decide what to put on the list? It’s so overwhelming. About the only decision we’ve made is to not really put clothes on the registry because people will give you lots anyway. The lists at the stores tell you to put so much on the registry that we just don’t think are necessary. But, what do we know?

Thankfully, we have friends who are due any day, so we’ll just watch them closely to see what does/doesn’t work. Thanks guys 🙂

Here’s a few items we cannot make a decision on. Any advice would be sooo appreciated.

• Car seat – infant or convertible? If we pick one, how will it work with the stroller?
• Stroller – do we get a full-size, car seat carrier, jogging w/ car seat attachment, or all three?
• Bedding – this one isn’t too hard, we just need to do a little more research.
• Bottles – Oh, where to start? I think we’ll get just a few and see which one little man likes best.
• Baby carrier – I think I’m going to be a huge fan of these but which one(s) to choose?
• Diaper bag – thought this would be an easy one, but a friend pointed out that you probably don’t want to carry your purse and the diaper bag so I should look into a nicer one (she suggested Coach – ain’t gonna happen) that works for both.
• Cloth Diapers – Yes, our chosen route (for now). We think we’re going to order a couple from a few different brands, see what works for us, then invest in more. In the first few weeks, we’ll use more disposable.

Help! Anyone?

If you’ve missed any bump updates, they’re all posted here.