On Friday, I decided to make oatmeal for breakfast. Mainly because we were out of bread, so the usual eggs and toast or French toast was out. I made it on the stove with milk and strawberries. Before serving it, I pulled out some homemade whipped cream and put a dollop on top of the oatmeal. Yum!
Yesterday Ben and I caught the last half of "Everyday Food" on PBS. The one recipe looked pretty good and easy, so we went to the store to buy the ingredients. It was for Steak with Brussels Sprouts and Almonds. I will admit, this was the first time that I have made Brussels sprouts. Or eaten them. But the recipe was pretty good. **Note** Skirt steak may be folded in half. Check before you cook. - Yep, we didn't know. So we didn't check. So when Ben went to turn the steaks over, they fell into two pieces. Still worked just fine, but the cooking had to be changed up (shorter time, flip again to cook the uncooked exposed parts).
While putting the recipe card away for the above recipe, I came across Strawberry Shortcake. Hmmm... We have strawberries. We have some whipped cream leftover. Why not? But instead of following the recipe card, which calls for Bisquick, I found another one from scratch. Mainly because of our 1899 fetish, but also because we don't have any Bisquick on hand (because of our fetish). Ben was a little worried because he is very much attached to the way his mom makes shortcake. But it turned out great! He must have liked it since that's what he asked for for breakfast. :)
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
V Day, Then and Now
One of our first Valentine’s Days together there was really bad weather. When Ben was bringing me home we did a 180 on Highway 7 due to the ice on the road. That was pretty exciting. This Valentine’s Day the weather was bad again. On the way to dinner we saw an SUV on its side and several cars in the ditches. But unlike the days of old, we didn’t have any excitement in the car.
We started off the day making breakfast together. The plan was to make waffles with strawberries, whipped cream and some hash browns. Our waffle maker had other plans. The first waffle stuck so badly, that we couldn’t get it out to try again. So we made pancakes instead. Still very tasty.
Since it’s our last Valentine’s Day sans kids, we decided to go out. Ben wanted to try an organic or locally sourced place, so I picked out Brasa Rotisserie in Minneapolis. They happened to have a V-Day special so we went with that. We had guacamole with veggies and chips, shrimp and smoked trout for our appetizer. For our meats we picked pork and beef. Both were so tender and tasty. We both liked the pork the best. We got to pick three sides so we picked collard greens, fried plantains and rice and beans. I wasn’t crazy about the greens, but the other sides were fantastic. We ended our dining experience with dessert… raspberry cheesecake, truffles and lavender caramel. The caramel was interesting. Better than I would have thought. I would recommend Brasa!
All in all, it was a great day. I’m so thankful for my Valentine.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Recap
Wow. It's been a while since I posted anything. Quick recap in order of events: Ben came home, Zoey ate a stick of butter, we went to maternity leave Q&A at work, I'm an aunt again, we had our first appointment at the new clinic. Whew. And of course, those are just the things that popped into my head.
When Ben went to India he had asked if there was anything I wanted him to buy for me. Since I've been there several times myself, I couldn't really think of anything. He bought me something anyway. He is so sweet! He bought two cute outfits... a baby boy and a baby girl outfit. They are so cute! The little girl outfit even came with a little scarf. How cute is that?!
It still amazes me what Zoey can eat with no effect on her system. At least nothing obvious. The other day she had a stick of butter. I think if I ate a whole stick I would be sick. Not Zoey. Everything was normal. But, if you give her a taco from Taco Bell, that's another story. We'll be weighing her this weekend to see what her weight looks like.
The maternity Q&A was interesting. I got to find out how much paid time I get once our baby comes. Too bad it's only 6 weeks. I would LOVE for it to be longer. I'm trying to extend my leave. We'll see how that goes.
Yesterday, Simon James was born to John and Sara. He is so cute from the one picture Ben was sent of him. We're planning on going to visit the new little guy either the last weekend in March or first in April. We can't wait!
Yesterday was also our first appointment at the new clinic. The only thing I didn't like about it is that the elevators are SO SLOW!! And there aren't stairs, except for emergency stairs. But anyway. The clinic seemed very nice. It's a new building, so it wasn't very clinic feeling. And one of the reasons I picked it (aside from delivering at the new hospital) is that it not only has OB, but also pediatrics, so I won't have to find another clinic for the baby. The way they work is that for my appointments I can either see the WHNP every time (unless there are complications), pick a doctor to see, or rotate doctors (there are 4). The nice thing about being able to rotate is that then I will have at least met the doctor once that will deliver my baby. That's another reason why I picked this clinic versus a big one (because then it would be a random doctor to deliver). And unfortunately, they weren't able to get us in for an ultrasound until 2/22, so it's a bit longer before we can get a visual on our little person.
When Ben went to India he had asked if there was anything I wanted him to buy for me. Since I've been there several times myself, I couldn't really think of anything. He bought me something anyway. He is so sweet! He bought two cute outfits... a baby boy and a baby girl outfit. They are so cute! The little girl outfit even came with a little scarf. How cute is that?!
It still amazes me what Zoey can eat with no effect on her system. At least nothing obvious. The other day she had a stick of butter. I think if I ate a whole stick I would be sick. Not Zoey. Everything was normal. But, if you give her a taco from Taco Bell, that's another story. We'll be weighing her this weekend to see what her weight looks like.
The maternity Q&A was interesting. I got to find out how much paid time I get once our baby comes. Too bad it's only 6 weeks. I would LOVE for it to be longer. I'm trying to extend my leave. We'll see how that goes.
Yesterday, Simon James was born to John and Sara. He is so cute from the one picture Ben was sent of him. We're planning on going to visit the new little guy either the last weekend in March or first in April. We can't wait!
Yesterday was also our first appointment at the new clinic. The only thing I didn't like about it is that the elevators are SO SLOW!! And there aren't stairs, except for emergency stairs. But anyway. The clinic seemed very nice. It's a new building, so it wasn't very clinic feeling. And one of the reasons I picked it (aside from delivering at the new hospital) is that it not only has OB, but also pediatrics, so I won't have to find another clinic for the baby. The way they work is that for my appointments I can either see the WHNP every time (unless there are complications), pick a doctor to see, or rotate doctors (there are 4). The nice thing about being able to rotate is that then I will have at least met the doctor once that will deliver my baby. That's another reason why I picked this clinic versus a big one (because then it would be a random doctor to deliver). And unfortunately, they weren't able to get us in for an ultrasound until 2/22, so it's a bit longer before we can get a visual on our little person.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
On My Own
Ben left Thursday for India. He'll be back next Sunday. So far, I have been keeping reasonably busy.
Thursday night I was going to poker (just to socialize, not play) but Zoey got sick again, so I decided to stay home.
Friday after work I took a nap and then went out to dinner with some friends. I had so much fun. And I laughed so much. We went to Pop restaurant in Minneapolis. The waiter brought us much amusement. When he came to the table he informed us that there was only one bowl of soup left and only one glass of a certain wine left. Ok. Seemed strange since it was still early for a Friday night, but whatever. After he took our order he came back a few minutes later to tell me that they only had one order of flautas left (I ordered two since it was an appetizer and he said it was small). So I changed my order to one order of flautas and one order of empanadas. A few minutes after that he came back to verify Heidi and Katie's orders. When the food arrived he discovered that he forgot to put Alyssa's order in. He told us he would treat us to dessert. I should also mention that he decided to speak Spanish to me... because I ordered Mexican food?!? Then he brought the dessert menus. We asked what he would recommend and he said the sampler. But since that was the most expensive dessert he told us he would chip in $5. Ok. I guess he didn't really mean that he was going to treat us to dessert. Whatever. But despite all that, we had a great time there. Actually, some of our laughs were around our waiter, so maybe without him it wouldn't have been so fun.
Saturday Zoey and I slept in until 7:30. We made some banana bread (ok, I made that) and I also cooked her some rice and chicken. Friday she only ate 1 cup of food instead of her normal 3 cups. When I got home from my dinner, she was more interested in sleeping than eating even though her stomach was growling like crazy. I figured maybe her stomach needed some easy food. She loved her breakfast. She kept asking for more. After that I met my mom at the mall to do some maternity shopping. I was only going to get a couple of pairs of work pants... but the sales lady and my mom got me to try on a whole bunch of stuff. I ended up with a bunch of clothes. But they should last until the baby comes. Hopefully Ben won't freak out too much when he sees the bill...
Sunday so far has been spent cleaning the kitchen. I washed dishes and cleaned off the counters. I washed all the cupboards, cleaned all the appliances and swept and mopped the floor. It looks nice. When I talked to Ben I told him he better be impressed. :) Now I'm trying to figure out what to eat this week so I can go to the grocery store.
Thursday night I was going to poker (just to socialize, not play) but Zoey got sick again, so I decided to stay home.
Friday after work I took a nap and then went out to dinner with some friends. I had so much fun. And I laughed so much. We went to Pop restaurant in Minneapolis. The waiter brought us much amusement. When he came to the table he informed us that there was only one bowl of soup left and only one glass of a certain wine left. Ok. Seemed strange since it was still early for a Friday night, but whatever. After he took our order he came back a few minutes later to tell me that they only had one order of flautas left (I ordered two since it was an appetizer and he said it was small). So I changed my order to one order of flautas and one order of empanadas. A few minutes after that he came back to verify Heidi and Katie's orders. When the food arrived he discovered that he forgot to put Alyssa's order in. He told us he would treat us to dessert. I should also mention that he decided to speak Spanish to me... because I ordered Mexican food?!? Then he brought the dessert menus. We asked what he would recommend and he said the sampler. But since that was the most expensive dessert he told us he would chip in $5. Ok. I guess he didn't really mean that he was going to treat us to dessert. Whatever. But despite all that, we had a great time there. Actually, some of our laughs were around our waiter, so maybe without him it wouldn't have been so fun.
Saturday Zoey and I slept in until 7:30. We made some banana bread (ok, I made that) and I also cooked her some rice and chicken. Friday she only ate 1 cup of food instead of her normal 3 cups. When I got home from my dinner, she was more interested in sleeping than eating even though her stomach was growling like crazy. I figured maybe her stomach needed some easy food. She loved her breakfast. She kept asking for more. After that I met my mom at the mall to do some maternity shopping. I was only going to get a couple of pairs of work pants... but the sales lady and my mom got me to try on a whole bunch of stuff. I ended up with a bunch of clothes. But they should last until the baby comes. Hopefully Ben won't freak out too much when he sees the bill...
Sunday so far has been spent cleaning the kitchen. I washed dishes and cleaned off the counters. I washed all the cupboards, cleaned all the appliances and swept and mopped the floor. It looks nice. When I talked to Ben I told him he better be impressed. :) Now I'm trying to figure out what to eat this week so I can go to the grocery store.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Good Report
Zoey's vet appointment went well. Aside from the fact that she really did not want to be there. In the exam room she kept scratching at the door. Poor pup.
The vet we saw was super nice. I liked her a lot. She listened to Zoey's eating adventures as of late. Since the only thing "wrong" seems to be that Zoey is acting hungry, she suggested adding veggies to her food to help add more volume to her food without adding too many more calories. Everything else (ears, eyes, mouth, stomach, heart, lungs) was great. Her blood tests came back normal too.
The interesting thing is that apparently our little girl has been losing weight. Remarkable considering how much extra she has been getting lately. But surprising too since we weighed her just about two months ago and she hadn't lost anything. This didn't really click (timeline) when we were at the vet's so Ben and I will start to weigh her weekly and monitor her weight. If she continues to lose, we will call back into the vet to see what could be causing that. In the meantime, lucky girl gets veggies. :)
The vet we saw was super nice. I liked her a lot. She listened to Zoey's eating adventures as of late. Since the only thing "wrong" seems to be that Zoey is acting hungry, she suggested adding veggies to her food to help add more volume to her food without adding too many more calories. Everything else (ears, eyes, mouth, stomach, heart, lungs) was great. Her blood tests came back normal too.
The interesting thing is that apparently our little girl has been losing weight. Remarkable considering how much extra she has been getting lately. But surprising too since we weighed her just about two months ago and she hadn't lost anything. This didn't really click (timeline) when we were at the vet's so Ben and I will start to weigh her weekly and monitor her weight. If she continues to lose, we will call back into the vet to see what could be causing that. In the meantime, lucky girl gets veggies. :)
Monday, January 25, 2010
And the Doctor Said...
Friday night we went out to dinner with Grant and his current girl and David and Heather. We went to Loring Pasta Bar. It was the first time I had been there. I had been "craving" mac and cheese. I was so excited when it was on their menu. ( I put craving in quotes because this is a fairly common craving for me and has nothing to do with the little person inside of me). We had a great time at dinner.
Towards the end, I was getting very uncomfortable. I wasn't sure if I had to go to the bathroom, my pants were too tight or my body was tired of sitting. When we got home it hurt to walk. I wasn't too concerned and went to bed. The next morning I woke up and the pain was still there. I wasn't overly worried yet, but I decided I should tell Ben. He said I should call the doctor. Ok, fine. When I explained what I was feeling to the doctor, she said it sounded like just a pulled muscle and that unless it got worse, not to worry about it. So, instead of taking down the Christmas tree (yes, it's still up), I sat on the couch all day.
On Sunday Ben and I ran to the store together to buy some food for the big game. We made 1899 BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches, veggies and dip, chips and guacamole and brownies. Who knew that eating like it's 1899 could be so darn tasty? When we got home from the store I discovered an empty wrapper to a 300 gram (14 oz) chocolate bar in our bedroom. I called downstairs to Ben to see how much was actually left (I brought it home from my layover in Germany in the fall and he had slowly been eating the bars). He said there was a whole one. Yep, that's the wrapper I found.
After scolding Zoey, Ben ran down to the computer to see what we should do while I called the emergency vet. The vet said to induce vomiting with hydrogen peroxide. After she emptied her stomach we were to then bring her in to get some active charcoal (to help absorb the toxins). I hated the thought of giving her HP so I gave her an egg instead (that usually makes her puke). She ate it happily and didn't throw up. So, she got the HP anyway. Not a fun experience for any of us. But sure enough, a few minutes later she vomited outside. We didn't get the whole dose (2 oz) in her, so we decided to go ahead and finish the dose. She was expecting it and it was even more difficult to get any down her throat. After waiting 15 minutes with no results, we gave up and went upstairs.
Ben and I then debated if we should take her in. It wasn't a lethal dose. And I'm pretty sure the vet (who isn't our vet) wanted us to come in so we could pay them. As we were discussing what we should do, Zoey vomited again. This time a lot. On our carpet (on a side note - this is really gross, but it smelled like chocolate so for the first time in my life I didn't mind cleaning it up). We went to work cleaning it up. I think the carpet looks pretty good. Whew. I called our vet today (Zoey needs her annual check up anyway) and mentioned the chocolate episode. They did not seem worried about it based on her size and the size of the bar and that we were able to get her to vomit it back up. Poor little girl. But tomorrow at her appointment we will be talking about her eating habits.
Towards the end, I was getting very uncomfortable. I wasn't sure if I had to go to the bathroom, my pants were too tight or my body was tired of sitting. When we got home it hurt to walk. I wasn't too concerned and went to bed. The next morning I woke up and the pain was still there. I wasn't overly worried yet, but I decided I should tell Ben. He said I should call the doctor. Ok, fine. When I explained what I was feeling to the doctor, she said it sounded like just a pulled muscle and that unless it got worse, not to worry about it. So, instead of taking down the Christmas tree (yes, it's still up), I sat on the couch all day.
On Sunday Ben and I ran to the store together to buy some food for the big game. We made 1899 BBQ pulled chicken sandwiches, veggies and dip, chips and guacamole and brownies. Who knew that eating like it's 1899 could be so darn tasty? When we got home from the store I discovered an empty wrapper to a 300 gram (14 oz) chocolate bar in our bedroom. I called downstairs to Ben to see how much was actually left (I brought it home from my layover in Germany in the fall and he had slowly been eating the bars). He said there was a whole one. Yep, that's the wrapper I found.
After scolding Zoey, Ben ran down to the computer to see what we should do while I called the emergency vet. The vet said to induce vomiting with hydrogen peroxide. After she emptied her stomach we were to then bring her in to get some active charcoal (to help absorb the toxins). I hated the thought of giving her HP so I gave her an egg instead (that usually makes her puke). She ate it happily and didn't throw up. So, she got the HP anyway. Not a fun experience for any of us. But sure enough, a few minutes later she vomited outside. We didn't get the whole dose (2 oz) in her, so we decided to go ahead and finish the dose. She was expecting it and it was even more difficult to get any down her throat. After waiting 15 minutes with no results, we gave up and went upstairs.
Ben and I then debated if we should take her in. It wasn't a lethal dose. And I'm pretty sure the vet (who isn't our vet) wanted us to come in so we could pay them. As we were discussing what we should do, Zoey vomited again. This time a lot. On our carpet (on a side note - this is really gross, but it smelled like chocolate so for the first time in my life I didn't mind cleaning it up). We went to work cleaning it up. I think the carpet looks pretty good. Whew. I called our vet today (Zoey needs her annual check up anyway) and mentioned the chocolate episode. They did not seem worried about it based on her size and the size of the bar and that we were able to get her to vomit it back up. Poor little girl. But tomorrow at her appointment we will be talking about her eating habits.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Cruisin'
On January 8, Ben and I left for the annual Internet Marketers Cruise. Years ago we discovered the wisdom of arriving the day before a cruise in case of delays. Guess what? We were delayed. There was an issue with our main radio on the plane. The radio was fixed in not too long of time, but because of the delay, our flight crew would be over hours. So we got to deplane to wait for the new flight crew. In exchange we got $100 Delta vouchers, 2500 bonus miles, and we got to the hotel at 4 am instead of 11 pm of the night before. Oh, well.
Day 1: Cape Canaveral - It was cold! Temp was around 30. The line to get through security for the cruise ship is outside. We were all a little miserable. If I had known that it was going to be so cold, I would have brought my winter coat. Ben was sweet and tried to get me to skip ahead to get inside. But since you still can't really tell that I'm pregnant, I felt guilty because I know how much I hate line cutters. But we survived. Once we got on the boat we took a self-guided tour led by Tim. That night there was a social hour before dinner to connect with the other marketers. It was so nice to see friends from last year again. Sherry is super excited that I'm pregnant. After dinner, Tim and I went to the show. After that the put an inflatable laser tag arena on the stage. Somehow Chris talked me into playing. It was so much fun! And man! 5 minutes is a long time. I felt so out of shape. Ben and some others played after us (I surprised Ben by still being awake since I hardly slept the night before).
Day 2: At Sea - Cold and windy! It was funny to walk along the Lido deck and not see very many people. And what people were braving the elements were huddled in blankets. We watched an ice carving demonstration. Then went to part of the art auction. Ben had a meeting with the other marketers, so I sat in on some of the auction and poked around the ship.
Day 3: Cozumel - What's this I see? Could it be? The sun? But it was still super windy. Ben and I went for a run on the outdoor track. When you rounded the end of the ship you really had to push through the wind. But then once you headed the other way, you had to put on the breaks. It was a little strange. Due to this wonderful weather, we decided the beach was not the way to go. So we just went to downtown and window shopped. We did buy a necklace and earring set for me. :)
Day 4: Isla Roatan, Honduras - Slight drizzle. Fun. There was a beach party excursion only for the marketers. We hadn't signed up for it. Turns out a bunch hadn't. So those that didn't found our own transportation to the same beach. It was super cloudy - so cloudy I didn't get sunburned. But the temperature was in the upper 60's so it was comfortable. Our friend Max Action got his hair braided. Elisabeth and I worked on a sand sculpture of some fertility goddess (her idea). Overall it was a fun day.
Day 5: Belize - I was super excited to be in Belize. I have heard of the amazing diving and snorkeling. Unfortunately, no diving for me. So we decided to go snorkeling. We took a public water taxi to an island 45 minutes away from Belize City and walked through the quaint island to the public beach. The beach wasn't much of a beach. We sunscreened up and headed for the water. It was cold! We snorkeled across a channel and around some mangroves. I will admit that I freaked out. The visibility was pretty low. And so I started to imagine what else was in the water with us. I calmed down enough to somewhat enjoy the snorkel back to the beach, but we really didn't see much. We did see some rays and some barracuda, but that's about it. Once we got out of the water, we decided to call it a day. There looked to be a storm on the way. The water taxi is uncovered and neither one of us was interested in a rainy ride.
Day 6: Costa Maya, Mexico - Finally! A perfect day! Temps were in the 70's. The sky was clear and the sun was radiant! We got off the ship and headed to the taxis. We ended up running into our friend Joseph with a few of his buddies. They had the same plan as us - beach to snorkel. We shared a cab to the beach. A guy baited and hooked us with $20 per person for 1 hour of snorkeling and the lady goes free pitch. The snorkeling was fabulous! Not the best ever, but so cool! Saw tons of fish and other sea creatures. It was the perfect day.
Day 7: At Sea - Ben had meetings pretty much all day, so I was on my own. I did the 1 mile walk for breast cancer. It was windy on deck for this too. But it was fun. Had a nice chat about cruising with a lady from Canada.
This was a super short summary of our activities. Not listed are the antics at night with our friends. We had so much fun. A lot of fond memories to tide us over until next year!
Day 1: Cape Canaveral - It was cold! Temp was around 30. The line to get through security for the cruise ship is outside. We were all a little miserable. If I had known that it was going to be so cold, I would have brought my winter coat. Ben was sweet and tried to get me to skip ahead to get inside. But since you still can't really tell that I'm pregnant, I felt guilty because I know how much I hate line cutters. But we survived. Once we got on the boat we took a self-guided tour led by Tim. That night there was a social hour before dinner to connect with the other marketers. It was so nice to see friends from last year again. Sherry is super excited that I'm pregnant. After dinner, Tim and I went to the show. After that the put an inflatable laser tag arena on the stage. Somehow Chris talked me into playing. It was so much fun! And man! 5 minutes is a long time. I felt so out of shape. Ben and some others played after us (I surprised Ben by still being awake since I hardly slept the night before).
Day 2: At Sea - Cold and windy! It was funny to walk along the Lido deck and not see very many people. And what people were braving the elements were huddled in blankets. We watched an ice carving demonstration. Then went to part of the art auction. Ben had a meeting with the other marketers, so I sat in on some of the auction and poked around the ship.
Day 3: Cozumel - What's this I see? Could it be? The sun? But it was still super windy. Ben and I went for a run on the outdoor track. When you rounded the end of the ship you really had to push through the wind. But then once you headed the other way, you had to put on the breaks. It was a little strange. Due to this wonderful weather, we decided the beach was not the way to go. So we just went to downtown and window shopped. We did buy a necklace and earring set for me. :)
Day 4: Isla Roatan, Honduras - Slight drizzle. Fun. There was a beach party excursion only for the marketers. We hadn't signed up for it. Turns out a bunch hadn't. So those that didn't found our own transportation to the same beach. It was super cloudy - so cloudy I didn't get sunburned. But the temperature was in the upper 60's so it was comfortable. Our friend Max Action got his hair braided. Elisabeth and I worked on a sand sculpture of some fertility goddess (her idea). Overall it was a fun day.
Day 5: Belize - I was super excited to be in Belize. I have heard of the amazing diving and snorkeling. Unfortunately, no diving for me. So we decided to go snorkeling. We took a public water taxi to an island 45 minutes away from Belize City and walked through the quaint island to the public beach. The beach wasn't much of a beach. We sunscreened up and headed for the water. It was cold! We snorkeled across a channel and around some mangroves. I will admit that I freaked out. The visibility was pretty low. And so I started to imagine what else was in the water with us. I calmed down enough to somewhat enjoy the snorkel back to the beach, but we really didn't see much. We did see some rays and some barracuda, but that's about it. Once we got out of the water, we decided to call it a day. There looked to be a storm on the way. The water taxi is uncovered and neither one of us was interested in a rainy ride.
Day 6: Costa Maya, Mexico - Finally! A perfect day! Temps were in the 70's. The sky was clear and the sun was radiant! We got off the ship and headed to the taxis. We ended up running into our friend Joseph with a few of his buddies. They had the same plan as us - beach to snorkel. We shared a cab to the beach. A guy baited and hooked us with $20 per person for 1 hour of snorkeling and the lady goes free pitch. The snorkeling was fabulous! Not the best ever, but so cool! Saw tons of fish and other sea creatures. It was the perfect day.
Day 7: At Sea - Ben had meetings pretty much all day, so I was on my own. I did the 1 mile walk for breast cancer. It was windy on deck for this too. But it was fun. Had a nice chat about cruising with a lady from Canada.
This was a super short summary of our activities. Not listed are the antics at night with our friends. We had so much fun. A lot of fond memories to tide us over until next year!
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